‘Lyantonde hospital mortuary’s state irks’ – PHC minister Kaducu

Minister Joyce checking and being shocked by the beds as the hospital administrator looks on (PHOTO BY BOB AINE)

LYANTONDE– Public Health Care (PHC) minister Joyce Kaducu was shocked by the state of Lyantonde hospital mortuary saying that the mortuary is irritating.

According to Kaducu, the mortuary looked more of a community pit latrine in a dilapidated state.

“Is this the mortuary of the hospital? How many bodies does it accommodate? Ooh My God I think the administration and leadership here you need to expedite the process of getting the money and ensure that a new mortuary is set up, are our “people” safe,” she wondered.

The hospital mortuary. (PHOTO BY BOB AINE)

Kaducu made the remarks during the commissioning of the Shs 500m Primary Health grant structures which money was given out by the government of Uganda through the health ministry.

The minister was further shocked by the hospital’s hygiene when she found used pampers dumped at the entrance of the maternity ward.

She tasked the hospital administration to ensure they allocate days for general cleanliness so that patients who go for treatment don’t contract more diseases especially this rainy season.

Kaducu, while in the male ward found there were little beds which had no mattresses.

Mwesigwa Muhamad the Lyantonde hospital administrator speaking to the media. (PHOTO BY BOB AINE)

“Its absurd to find that the building is new but it has no beds even the little mattresses that are there are very old, I think you can improvise buy some mattresses with new covers and then paint these beds to give them a facelift, I think a patient can feel better when he is in an environment that is secured.”

In an interview with the minister, Kaducu told this website that he had come on a fact-finding mission on the state of the hospital and commissioning the hospital structures. She confirmed that they are going to support the hospital in putting up a good mortuary.

A patient lying on the bed unattended to in the male ward. (PHOTO BY BOB AINE)

Mwesigwa Muhammad, the hospital administrator noted that the hospital is overwhelmed by the inflows of patients from various districts. On the sanitation, Mwesigwa said that they try to ensure good sanitation but sometimes patients are adamant.

He further said that they have a challenge of the mortuary which cannot house more than three bodies, he noted that the district leadership is lobbying money to ensure that they set up a new mortuary.

“We are now on the slab but we are stuck with money, if we can get more money then we can finish faster this new mortuary.”