04 Mar 2019

Plans are underway to upgrade four hospitals to the status of Gaborone’s Princess Marina and Nyangabgwe in Francistown which will bring to six the number of referral facilities in Botswana.

The revelation was made by Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Alfred Madigele when addressing Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital employees recently.

The four facilities earmarked for upgrading from primary hospital to referral status are Letsholathebe in Maun, Sekgoma Memorial in Serowe, Scottish Livingstone in Molepolole as well as Mahalapye hospital.

Dr Madigele said the decision to increase the number of referral hospitals was meant to spare Batswana the long distances they had to contend with to get tertiary health care.

“We have two referral hospitals other than the Sbrana Psychiatrist Hospital and because of the vastness of the country we have taken a decision to increase the number of referral hospitals,” he said to deafening applause from the health personnel in attendance.

Although the change of status would come at a cost, Dr Madigele maintained the ministry would nonetheless go ahead with implementation in order to provide the best service to the people. 

Furthermore, Dr Madigele said the development of multi sectoral approach to Non Communicable Diseases (NCD’s) was another key decision taken by the ministry to take the scourge head on and that the scope of the National Aids Coordinating Agency, which had vast experience in multi-sectoral response, had been broadened to include NCD’s.

“As a ministry we have also undertaken to implement a two year internship programme. It is apparent from our desktop review that there is a deficiency in skills set of doctors who are new graduates, hence the decision to equip them with the necessary skills,” he said.

 On referrals, especially to South Africa, Dr Madigele said an audit had shown there was an inherent weakness in the system whereby more than half the number of referrals were not necessary; something he said was hemorrhaging the national coffers.

He said government spent between P250million to P400 million annually on procedures performed on Batswana at South African health facilities.

To this end, Dr Madigele said a move to leverage on local private sector was on cards to help solve the problem. Once implemented, the development would greatly reduce backlog of cases in government facilities and bring down the health bill.

He informed his audience that a tender for outsourcing both surgical and gynaecology services had already been  awarded to allow private medical practitioners to perform medical procedures at government facilities and that in future the same arrangement would be extended to other branches of medicine.

Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital superintendent, Dr Mpho Ramato expressed appreciation for the support the ministry gave the facility citing initiatives geared  addressing the hospital’s  various shortfalls including medical specialty through partnerships with countries’ such as China and Cuba, outsourcing of services as well as the introduction of facility management consultants.

Dr Ramato said the interventions had enabled the hospital to focus more on its core mandate of treating patients.

Commenting, employees applauded government for its decision to increase the number of referral hospitals saying it would help ease pressure at both Princess Marina and Nyangabgwe.

They however pleaded with the minister and ministry management to improve their welfare and conditions of service such as stagnation, lack of accommodation and equipment.BOPA