I have just seen my last patient and I think I will tell you what is bothering me. You see, I have only this lttle clinic that caters for simple problems. If patients have bigger problems that need further care and hospitalization, I refer them. However, I am planning to have my own “little” hospital some day.
Anyway, my problem is that, when I refer patients to the hospital, they don’t get the necessary investigations and other things as expected. The hospitals are lacking in basic equipments. But this is true: some months back, a judge in Juba died because there is no nebulizer in the hospital! He had an acute attack of asthma and died, with the doctors watching helplessly!
Imagine that! What a disaster. I wonder where our ministers go when they get sick. True, we heard some these days fly to South Africa or Uganda, scrambling a plane at short notice. But what will happen between the time of preparation and actual flying out? Acute illnesses are acute and you may quit the earth before you call your grand mother’s name. Equiping Juba hospital makes good sense, not only for the honourable ministers, but also for the common citizen.
We may lack the cadres to man most equipments, but with proper planning, we could get them into trainings, etc. There should be a budget somewhere for capacity building in the medical service.
As for my little clinic, it will continue to serve as best as it could. Who knows, maybe the dream of the bigger hospital may come true one day
