03 Mar 2017

 

 

 

Assistant Minister of Health and Wellness, Mr Dikgang Makgalemele has said community based committees such as village health committees (VHCs), home based care (HBCs) committees, village development committees (VDCs) and village extension teams (VETs) play an important role in the health sector of the nation.

He said health is a cross cutting issue in all areas of life and such committees which are grounded on the roots of society  serve as a  link between the people of this country and the Ministry of Health and Wellness.

Mr Makgalemele who is also Member of Parliament for Shoshong said this when addressing health sector employees as well as VHC, HBC, VDC and VET committees in Serule recently.

The purpose of his visit was to find out how the village clinic and committees were operating, challenges they faced  and also to  get advise from the committees and clinic on how to improve health services in the area.

He said the committees are the eyes and ears of government that maintain flow of information regarding health issues from communities on the ground to the government so that measures could be put in place to maintain a healthy and productive nation.

He said government recognizes the roles the committees and members of such committees play in helping to keep a healthy nation. He said their work is highly appreciated more so that  committee members pursue their duties on a voluntary basis.

He went on to state that government was aware of some challenges the committees faced such as insufficient resources and allowances to motivate them to pursue their volunteer work.

However, he mentioned that government had plans in place to sensitise the committee members on business issues so that they initiate business projects that will serve as a source of income.

“Such committees are encouraged to engage in business projects that will be funded by government to empower themselves and have a source of income that would help them pursue their health volunteerism work accordingly,” he said.

He mentioned that out of the 22 districts in the country, 20 VHCs in 20 districts were active and vibrant and government was looking into ways of resuscitating the committees that are lagging behind or facing challenges. 

He went on to call Batswana to take care of their health and to go for routine medical checkups to know their health status.

He touched on HIV noting that concerns have been raised regarding people who do not take their medication accordingly resulting in some deaths taking place.

He said urged people to take their ARV medication accordingly and according to set time frame.

He said VHC should keep an eye on people who default in taking medication and report such cases to the nearest clinic or hospital so that officials could visit the said people and assist them accordingly. 

Further, he said VHCs should continue sensitizing people about HIV and other health issues and encouraged them to take precautions.

Mr Makgalemele further indicated that government is implementing the ‘Treat All’ programme where patients commence ARV therapy as soon as they are found to be positive.

He said government’s target is to have at least 90 per cent of the population to have tested for HIV.

He said out of the total who have tested 90 per cent of those found to be HIV positive to be engaged in the ARV programme.

For his part councillor for Serule/Gojwane, Mr Meshack Mabutho said the Serule clinic provides services to people from Serule, Gojwane, Moreomabele, Topisi and Damochojenaa and  called on government to consider increasing the number of nurses at the facility.

He also urged government to consider introducing a maternity wing at the Serule clinic citing incidents where people give birth while enroute to Selebi Phikwe or Francistown hospitals.

He also urged government to consider providing at least four beds at the clinic on temporary basis until the motive to add a maternity wing at the clinic is considered.

Mr Mabutho also called on government to provide a utility vehicle to assist with administration procedures of the clinic and also help transport HBC, VHC and VDC members when doing their roundup check on patients and other official duties and avail the clinic ambulance to transport patients to referral hospitals in the region.

Meanwhile, acting kgosi of Serule, Mr Dineo Kebadiretse noted that the Serule was experiencing shortage of accommodation for nurses and requested government to assist where possible. ENDS

He also called on more nurses to be engaged at the village clinic looking at the area and villages the clinic provides services to.