Mulago hospital to get trauma centre

The Israeli government has donated equipment for building a new trauma centre at Mulago Referral Hospital to relieve the facility of the alarming number of causalities.

The centre is a fulfillment of a promise by the Israeli’s Foreign Affairs Minister in 2009.

A Jewish contingent, led by Mr Gil Haskel, the Israel ambassador to Kenya, said the construction will kick off at the end of this month.

The ambassador also said Israeli experts will help in training doctors at Mulago on how to use the equipment as well as handling trauma cases.

During a press briefing on Friday, Mulago Hospital director Dr Byarugaba Baterana said: “Mulago has limited space yet patients keep coming, we find ourselves in a corner and sometimes patients have no beds. The centre will solve a lot, especially at the emergency ward department.”

Currently, Mulago handles trauma cases together with other emergencies. Trauma cases are categorised as those with severe burns, extreme physiological illness, amputations incase of explosions, among others.

First in the country
The centre will be the first of its kind in the country to separate surgical and non-surgical emergencies from trauma and emergencies.

It will handle cases such as accident victims, severe burns, acid attacks, domestic violence victims and iron bar victims which are the most cases registered at the casualty ward.

The centre will be constructed next to the current casualty ward within New Mulago.

The hospital director said the ward registers an average of 120 traumatic emergencies daily with boda boda accidents contributing the biggest percentage.

“When people get excited especially during public holidays and festivities, the number of emergency cases increases yet the facility is small and doctors are few,” Dr Byarugaba said.

During chaotic times like last year’s walk- to-work protest, beds were put in corridors to handle the emergencies, Dr Byarugaba said.

Currently the hospital has four ambulances which is inadequate given the geographical area it serves.

editorial@ug.nationmedia.com