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Walter Nyamukondiwa–Mashonaland West Bureau
With each passing trimester and scheduled visits to the local Monera Clinic in Mhondoro, the expectant joy of a soon to be father, Ernest Muvhami, was increasingly bridled with fear as it became a stark reminder of defined obligations when the big day of his wife’s delivery arrived.
His fear was how he would manage to raise enough money and resources to take his wife to Mhondoro Rural Hospital in the event of complications, itself an ominous sign of further transfers to Chegutu, Harare or St Michaels.
This would raise the stakes as distance ate into time, a common denominator in the management of any health condition, especially in pregnancy.
Therein lies his fear.
With the hospital ambulance broken down, it meant a further US$50 to hire a car for the bumpy ride to Chegutu, Harare or St Michaels hospitals.
The distances take at least two hours, and in some cases resulted in complications which often led to miscarriage or death of the mother and the child.
With at least a month before his wife delivers, Mhondoro Rural Hospital has been upgraded and spruced up, much to the delight and relief of Mr Muvhami.
To the people of Mhondoro-Mubaira, the development is a gift from the heavens, a relief and a tangible manifestation of Government’s call for private sector driven socio-economic transformation.
The health centre, upgraded and expanded by platinum giants, Zimplats, was officially commissioned by President Mnangagwa on Thursday, consummating one of the most enduring private-public partnerships.
The President was quick to commend the increasing role of the private sector in improving the country’s health delivery system, having officially opened Muduvuri Pan African Referral Hospital in Kadoma a few days earlier.
The US$1 million Mhondoro Rural Hospital upgrade saw construction of a laundry facility with washing machines and a dryer, outpatient ablution facilities, staff canteen, a fully equipped mortuary, sinking of a new borehole supplying the hospital with reticulated water and renovation of the administration office.
It also saw the refurbishment of the hospital’s main building and maternity ward, which was constructed in the 1940s and had become derelict.
In the second phase, the hospital got a new theatre and accommodation for a doctor and theatre assistants.
The spatial layout of the hospital has improved its ambience and allows for free circulation of air.
With this development, the hospital is now expected to have a resident doctor, which eliminates the need for people in the area to be transferred to St Michaels, Chegutu and Harare, unless it is for specialised care.
Mr Muvhami hailed the timely intervention.
The newly built houses for hospital staffers, including the doctor and nurses’ quarters.
“I had fears because we have seen people dying or losing their babies over the years when they are transferred to St Michaels, Chegutu District Hospital or other referral health centres in Harare from Mhondoro Rural Hospital,” said Mr Muvhami.
“My major worry was that I would not be able to raise the required amount of money in case of emergency.”
Mrs Maybe Paraiwa of Mubaira Growth Point said the state of the hospital had been a cause for concern over the years.
“Because of the state of the hospital, small procedures had to be referred to other hospitals which are far from Mubaira and the upgrading of facilities at the hospital makes life easier for us,” said Mrs Paraiwa.
“We had no ambulance at the hospital and pregnant women would deliver along the way to other hospitals while others suffered miscarriages. Others would fail to raise the money needed to hire cars, further complicating the situation.”
In another show of support to Government’s thrust for private sector participation, the St John Apostolic Church of the Whole World donated an ambulance to the hospital.
The gesture by the two organisations have overnight managed to solve the Mhondoro-Mubaira community’s major health related challenges.
An elated Mrs Lindiwe Muhamba was full of praise for President Mnangagwa’s vision to rope in the private sector in solving some of the country’s challenges.
“We are happy to learn that we now have a mothers’ shelter at our hospital,” she said. “I am still to fully believe that we can now have surgery done here in Mhondoro-Mubaira.
“The situation was so bad for people in our area that even small things which a doctor can easily deal with had to be referred to St Michaels, Chegutu or Harare. The distance to these areas is so long which could lead to some complications or deaths.”
Chief Mushava from Mhondoro-Ngezi welcomed the gesture by Zimplats, saying more needed to be done to uplift communities.
“We appreciate what Zimplats and Government are doing, but we expect more so that the overall life of our people improves,” said Chief Mushava.
The situation in the area had prompted those who failed to raise the required money for transport to resort to using native midwives which increased the chances of a mishap.
Using native midwives, commonly known as Nyamukuta, sometimes worked, but at other times complications would arise leading to loss of the baby and even the mother.
For the nearly 12 000 people served by the hospital in Mhondoro-Mubaira, the once transit health centre offering largely primary care has evolved to become a modern hospital with modern facilities at a growing Mubaira Growth Point.
Ironically, buses in Mhondoro often travel early in the morning to Harare, the opposite direction of St Michaels and Chegutu District Hospital, where people were regularly referred.
This meant they had to use pirate taxis or hire vehicles, paying more than the bus fares.
The hospital serves people being referred from Monera, Watyoka and Presbyterian clinics, among other health centres.
Online Reporter