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Rumbidzayi Zinyuke in Bulawayo
With the construction and equipping of Cowdray Park Health Centre in Bulawayo now complete, residents have called for the Government to speedily open the facility to enable them to access health care.
The centre is the second to be completed in an initiative by the Second Republic to build 30 22-bed clinics and five 60 bed district hospitals across the country over the next three years.
Construction of the health centres is being done by NMS Infrastructure Limited and wholly funded by the Government through the Ministry of Health and Child Care and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development.
NMS is a British owned engineering, procurement, construction and finance developer specialising in ten key projects around Africa.
Speaking to The Herald, residents expressed their hope that the facility would start operating soon as they were still travelling long distances to the nearest health centre.
“Our clinic is really looking good now that it is complete but we are worried by the delay in opening. We are tired of walking long distances to access the clinic that we are currently using and we want this one to start offering us services. Once this clinic opens it will be good for everyone, especially pregnant women who sometimes have to walk if they do not have the bus fare to travel to the nearest clinic,” said Ms Dalice Sibanda.
The community is currently using a satellite clinic run by Bulawayo city council, which is too small to cater for the health needs of the population.
As a result, residents opt to travel further to Luveve and Emakhandeni clinics for health care.
Pregnant women said they needed bus fare for every antenatal visit hence the local facility would be a better option.
“For us pregnant women, this clinic is a wonderful thing because I might get into labour in the middle of the night and it will be difficult to get transport. So if I come to deliver at this clinic I can easily walk and get here on time. The satellite clinic is far and this suburb is too big so when we go for our visits, we do not get assistance as fast as we would like,” said Mrs Nomalanga Sibanda.
Another expecting mother, Ms Bongi Nyathi stressed the need to open the facility sooner than later.
“This clinic will make a big difference because it has a maternity ward so I am happy that once it opens its doors, I will get checked closer to my home and I can deliver here. I am praying that it opens soon as it will save me time and money to travel to Luveve,” she said.
Other residents said having a health centre close to them would improve the health seeking behaviours of many people in the area.
Ms Ruth Shoko said patients on Antiretroviral treatment sometimes took time to collect their medication as they would wait until they got money to travel.
“We are happy that this clinic is complete but it is taking too long to be opened. We are asking that they open the clinic because we are travelling long distances now its small. Even people on ART sometimes might not be able to get money to travel to collect from Luveve,” she said.
Mr Kelibile Thabani expressed hope that the clinic would help facilitate more developments within the area including the construction of a proper roads.
“Since this clinic is complete, we now look forward to seeing the roads rehabilitated so that people can access it easily. We also expect to benefit as fruit and vegetable vendors from the business that will come from the people with relatives who will be using this facility,” said Ms Faith Nyirongo.
NMS installation, commissioning, maintenance and training (ICMT) manager Mr Tendayi Gatsi confirmed that the facility was now 100 percent complete and would be handed over to the Ministry of Health and Child Care soon.
“Cowdray Park is site number two and it is 100 percent complete like Stoneridge, which was the first site. We are proceeding to Mataga health centre in Mberengwa and Runyararo in Chimanimani,” he said.
“This is self-sustaining facility coming with a full on solar system, accommodation units for the staff who will be stationed here and its coming with a brick incinerator and a water reservoir. It is also coming with the best equipment including anaesthesia machines, X-ray machines, ultrasounds and vital signs machines.”
The facility is equipped with delivery, prenatal, post-natal and procedure rooms. It also has a paediatric ward, three consultation rooms and an imaging store which houses a mobile x-ray machine.
Bulawayo Metropolitan Provincial Medical Director Dr Mafios Siyamchembu said they were now ready to receive the facility so that it could start operating.
“We have looked at the structure and we are ready to open. We are waiting for the green light from head office and his Excellency (President Mnangagwa) to commission it,” he said.
He said according to the 2022 Census, Cowdray park has about 76 000 people, which is roughly 10 percent of the population in Bulawayo.
He said the makeshift clinic being utilised was not fit to cater for such a huge population.
“We think this facility will be busy serving this large population which is the second largest settlement in Zimbabwe and it will be helpful as people will not have to travel long distances to clinics and hospitals,” he added.
Dr Siyamchembu said the staff who would run the facility had already been employed and they included a resident doctor, clinical officer, matron, a number of registered nurses, midwives, radiographers, lab technicians as well as general hands.
All facilities are expected to be completed within the next three years.
The majority of the modern facilities are expected to be located in far to reach areas, improving access to health services for most communities.
Online Reporter