Fort Portal Hospital in drug, staffing crisis

Authorities at Fort Portal Regional Referral Hospital have expressed concern over frequent stock-out of essential drugs and lack of specialised doctors, saying it is crippling health services.

The hospital director, Dr Alex Adaku, said out of the list of drugs they requested from National Medical Stores (NMS), they receive less than the demand.

“The medicine we order is not what we receive. By the end of this third quarter, about 45 percent of our supplies were not delivered, especially vital medicine. When the medicine is not there, we ask patients to buy,” Dr Adaku told members of the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Monday, who were visiting the hospital.

He added that the health facility  runs out of essential drugs after every two months.

The facility serves a population of 3.5 million from the Rwenzori Sub-region and patients from other areas.

“We receive more than 300 patients daily in the out-patient department. The majority don’t have referral letters.  I request government to streamline the referral system so that we can serve our people better,” Dr Anaku said.

However, the NMS spokesperson, Ms Sheila Nduhukire, said the hospital has been able to absorb almost its Shs1.3b  budget for medical supplies this financial year, and they (NMS) have been delivering as requested. 

“Otherwise, how else could they have utilised all their budget if we were not giving them medicine and supplies?” she asked.

According to a hospital report, by end of April, the staffing levels was 73 percent of which specialised doctors fill 42 percent of the positions, while 16 percent of the health workers are accommodated in staff houses.

No specialised services

Dr Adaku said the facility refers patients who need specialised services such as orthopadeics to other hospitals in Kampala due to lack of qualified staff.

“Our orthopaedic surgeon doctor was taken to Mulago Hospital, so when you need surgery in orthopaedics or you have a problem fixing an internal bone, we have to refer that patient,” the hospital director said.

A health worker, who preferred anonymity, said they also lack a neurologist, dental surgeon, ophthalmologist, maxillofacial surgeon, ENT (ear, nose, throat) specialist, cardiologist, pathologist, dermatologist, and hematologist, among others. The facility also does not have a CT scan machine.

The senior nursing officer in charge of the surgical ward, Ms Joyce Munakenya, said patients who need CT scans are referred to other health facilities such as Mulago and Mbarara.

Last month, majority of the 52 people who were injured in the Link Bus accident on Fort Portal-Kyenjojo road were referred to other facilities  for CT scans.

Recommendations, findings from MPS

The chairperson of the PAC, Mr Medard Sseggona, said they will make recommendations to government to ensure that they improve staffing levels and build other infrastructure at the facility. “In the coming financial year, we budgeted for a CT scan and X-Ray for this facility. We hope it will be delivered, we shall also ask the NMS to improve the supplies,”  Mr Sseggona said. He said they also discovered that the intensive care unit at the hospital has limited space with only a four-bed capacity, a while the emergency ward has two beds despite increasing cases of accidents. “How can a regional referral hospital have four beds in the ICU, they were given 10 beds but the space is also congested,” Mr Sseggona said.