Fort Portal hospital gets boost for emergency ward

Apr 06, 2017

Th public was called on to donate blood and support accident victims.

PIC: From left, KRC executive director Julius Mwanga hands over a sh20m cheque to Tom Butime, minister of Local Government as Dr Consolata Kabonesa and Mohammed Shariff look on. (Credit: Geoffrey Mutegeki)

Fort Portal regional referral hospital has received sh20m for purchasing of equipment for the Emergency and Accident Ward.

The money grossed from the proceeds of the KRC@20 marathon that was organized by Kabarole Research and Resource Center (KRC) as one of the activities to celebrate its 20th anniversary.

While handing over the cheque to the hospital administration, the executive director of KRC, Julius Mwanga called for increased government funding to the health sector.

"The [countrywide] ratio of doctors to patients is still low at 1:24,000 and 1:11,000 for nurses respectively. There is need to increase the funding," said Mwanga.

Dr Charles Olaro, who is the hospital director, commended KRC for the support to the hospital and appealed to the public to donate blood and support accident victims due to the increased number of accidents on highways.

A number of other activities including the Health Week were organized, with a wide range of a wide range of services including male circumcision, HIV testing and counseling, cervical cancer screening and blood donation. It also had exhibition of sustainable food diets.

Fort Portal Municipality MP Alex Ruhunda challenged the local population to live responsible health behaviors as a way of planning well for their future and generations to come.

Ruhunda revealed that people should get concerned with the changing global dynamics and have positive mindsets.

He urged local governments to spearhead the ban against selling sachet alcohol as was recently proposed by parliament.

The legislator cautioned the youths to protect themselves against HIV/AIDS while assuring them that they are people of a higher integrity in the near future.

Augustine Mutabali, working with Rwenzori Anti-corruption Coalition (RAC), revealed that health facilities in Kabarole district are still lacking adequate medical care services.

"Health centers are poorly equipped with staff and drugs. There is absenteeism of health workers and theft of drugs as well as abuse of patients, which need to be checked," he said.

Regarding climatic change, KRC also launched institutional energy-saving cook stoves in four schools along with tree planting in some schools where 800 tree seedlings were given by KRC as part of the one million tree planting campaign.

The benefiting schools include Kahunge Model Primary School in Kamwenge district, King Solomon's College Kyatega in Kyegegwa district, Kyenjojo Secondary School in Kyenjojo distruct and Bumadu Seed Secondary School in Bundibugyo district.

The institutional energy-saving cook stoves and tree planting are part of a climate change synergy.

Mohammed Shariff, deputy director of KRC, said the energy saving stoves will go a long way in saving the environment.

The four schools supported were using the traditional three-stone stoves to prepare meals for the students whose fuel consumption is exceptionally high. For instance King Solomon's College in Kyegegwa uses 43 to 45 trucks of firewood per term.

KRC also gave out 200 seedlings to each school for planting on their compound.

 

 

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