Health experts ask govt to abolish treatment of officials abroad

HEALTH

Health professionals have urged President Yoweri Museveni to respond to their letter which highlighted issues affecting the health sector in the country and abolishing treatment of government officials abroad.

They said treating top high ranking government officials abroad robs the country of huge resources which should instead be invested in the country's  healthcare system.

They cited $123m (about sh455b) which was spent on government officials in India alone in 2016.

Addressing a pressing conference at Fellowship of Christian Unions (FOCUS) in Mulago the health experts said their major concern was the plight of Ugandans dying due to the poor health care system.

Dr. Emmanuel Luyirika told reporters that they as health professionals wrote a letter to President Yoweri Museveni on July 3, highlighting challenges affecting the healthcare system in the country.

According to Dr Luyirika the letter was copied to the Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga, Minister of Health Dr Ruth Aceng, minister of finance Matia Kasaija and the Leader of Opposition in Parliament Betty AOL Ochan and up to now they haven't received any response.

During the press conference attended by Dr Stephen Watiti, Dr Richard Idro, the president of Uganda Medical Association and Dr Olive Kobusingye among others the experts highlighted issues such as treating government officials abroad, which they suggested, should be abolished as this takes up huge sums of money, limited funding to health facilities across the country and lack of quality health services among others.

"Severe and persistent underfunding of health is hurting Ugandans," Dr Luyirika told reporters.
He pointed out that the primary health care services especially disease prevention efforts, sanitation and hygiene support visits to homes by health workers do not exist anymore.

"Uganda is running a heavily hospital dependent curative system," he said.

The Health professionals told reporters that Uganda lacks a national and functional patient referral system and ambulance services.

"Thousands of Ugandans die every year of manageable conditions because of lack of co-ordinated referral system and an ambulance service," Dr Kobusingye, a prominent health expert and author said.

Dr Watiti told the scribes that a total of 1.4 million persons are living with HIV/AIDS and of this only 1.2 million are on  antiretroviral therapy (ART treatment)

He pointed out  that 19,000 persons living with HIV die annually.

He called upon the government to provide equitable healthcare to Ugandans and not only minding about treating top government officials abroad.

The health professionals have proposals to government among them are governance and accountability noting that money shouldn't be swindled by government officials, Uganda develops a robust national health service funded from the taxpayers money to ensure equity in access and government upgrades all regional referral hospitals as soon as possible.

Dr Kobusingye urged politicians to put health as a priority in their manifestos as Uganda goes to the polls in 2021.