Harare Hospital in dire straits

and donors should consider bailing out the referral public health institution.
Speaking to stakeholders attending the hospital’s Open Day, Minister Madzorera said Government could not do it all by itself.
“We need everyone’s involvement. This institution should go back to the old days,” he said.
The hospital’s chief executive officer, Ms Peggy Zvavamwe, said at the same accession that they relied on funding from the National Budget and revenue collections which is not enough.
In the last quarter, the hospital received approximately a tenth from the National Budget of what it had budgeted.
Many patients are evading payment by giving false addresses, sabotaging follow-ups on revenue collection.
“We are in a dire financial situation,” said Ms Zvavamwe. “We practically have no money.
“We only received a tenth of what we had budgeted for from the fiscus and that fraction is not enough to buy medicines for three months.”
Chronicling the road that the hospital has travelled since its inception in 1950, Ms Zvavamwe said services offered at the institution were actually regressing.
She said the financial crisis that the hospital found itself in had affected every department ranging from training of nurses and doctors to staff accommodation, hospital wards, laundry and equipment.
“Most of our equipment is now obsolete and is always down,” said Ms Zvavamwe.
“Specialists are no longer interested in working here as there is literally no equipment to use in the wards and those available require replacement as they are always down.
“Because of shortage of funds, we can barely get all the needed supplies for our patients and the efficient running of the hospital.”
Harare Central Hospital was officially opened on May 2, 1958 as a 630-bed health institution.
Then the institution had 28 Government medical officers (GMOs) but now there is only one GMO despite an increase in the workload.
Ms Zvavamwe said the hospital used to offer more than 20 services, which included clinical, surgery, maternity, children, renal and an eye unit, but now some of the services are no longer offered.
The hospital has now expanded its capacity to 1 100 beds, but little has been done to match the growing number of people needing care.
There are only 34 nurses in the Intensive Care Unit when a full complement of 60 is required.
The casualty department is supposed to have an establishment of 64 nurses, but there are only 49, while the outpatients department has 11 nurses instead of the required 26.
Other challenges faced by the hospital include water problems characterised by dry taps at night and frequent pipe bursts.
But Ms Zvavamwe said some programmes implemented by the inclusive Government in 2009 went a long way in reviving the institution following its closure the previous year.
With the assistance of donors, some departments such as theatres in the children’s hospital, Intensive Care Unit, Renal Unit and a few adopted wards got a facelift from local and international sympathisers.
The hospital’s laundry superintendent, Mr Naison Muchaya, said they were relying on one machine after others were beyond repair.
“All things being normal laundry should be done in one day and sent back to the wards, but it takes an average of three days to do that,” he said.
In the maternity ward, Sister Joyce Willis, said some mothers were forced to deliver on beds without linen.
She said the labour ward assisted an average of 50 mothers daily.
The Open Day was attended by Harare Mayor Muchadeyi Masunda, Health Services Board chairperson Dr Lovemore Mbengeranwa and HSB members and consultants, among other stakeholders.