By Joan Wangui
The New Times

A UK-based humanitarian organization, Orthodox Hospitalles, has donated medical equipment worth 250,000 Pound Sterling to Kibuye hospital in a bid to better health services. The equipment includes Aspiration Irrigation Machines, Camera Systems, Defibrillator, Mini-viewers, Projectors and reels among others.

The donation was facilitated by Direct Humanitarian Aid (DHA), a UK-based organization that provides medical equipment throughout the world, particularly in Africa and the Far East.

Mr. Arafat Ashdad Seth, the representative of Direct Humanitarian Aid in Rwanda (DHA) told The New Times that the donation is the first of its kind in Rwanda and there is hope for more from other organizations in the UK. Asked why Kibuye Hospital was chosen, Seth said that the hospital’s facilities have worn out, hence the need for replacement.

He also said that Kibuye has a huge population and the current medical facilities at the main hospital are inadequate. He pledged to woo the UK donors for more donations in order to aid Rwandan hospitals that are in dire need of equipment and other medical facilities. The Minister of Health Dr.Jean Damascene Ntawukuliryayo observed that the donation was timely, adding that Rwandan hospitals lacked adequate facilities.

“The entire health sector in the country needs the basic infrastructure as a prerequisite for improved medical services of our population,” said the minister. He observed that the Kibuye hospital staff had welcomed the donation with pomp.

The Minister, however, observed that the biggest challenge was the maintenance of such crucial equipment, as the technicians in hospitals lacked proper skills of maintenance. He said that since most of the equipment is not new, the ministry will have to employ skilled people to maintain it.

Ntawukuliryayo also said that the hospital needs to increase the number of doctors in order to mitigate the shortage. Currently, the hospital boasts of only five medical doctors, who he said, cannot handle the huge population of Kibuye.

He also said that the government plans to improve the entire health system in the province. The government is already putting a lot of efforts in promoting HIV testing in the province. It has injected a lot of funds in Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) centres within the hospital.

“Our challenge now is to mobilise resources such as human resource, modern equipment and basic infrastructure,” he said.

The Minister noted that Rwanda lacks enough doctors and skilled nurses. “The country has got only 450 medical doctors and though the number of nurses is high, most of them are not skilled,” Ntawukuliryayo said adding: “We are currently discussing with our development partners to have external medics come to Rwanda.”

Another problem in Rwanda he said, is that very few people visit health centres. The minister said that only 30% visit hospitals regularly to check on their health systems. “We have to change people’s mindsets by sensitizing them on regular medical checkups. Many only visit doctors when their health conditions have deteriorated,” he noted.

Asked about the ministry’s stand in a case involving the infamous Isidore Mahoro, the Gitarama-based traditional healer who claims to have a cure for HIV/Aids, the minister disclosed that the government doesn’t advocate for traditional medicine that is not clinically tested and given medical approval.

“The government encourages traditional medicine on condition that those administering it have to prove beyond reasonable doubt the authenticity of the drugs; otherwise the Ministry (Health) will continue barring those who don’t fit the condition,” Ntawukuliryayo said.

In the recent past, the Gitarama-based traditional healer had claimed to have the cure of HIV/Aids, saying he was ‘inspired by the Virgin Mary’ and many people living with the deadly virus had trekked to Mahoro’s place in search of the herbs.

The Minister also revealed that he advised Mahoro to seek help from researchers, mainly from the University of Rwanda (NUR) to analyze the legitimacy of his claims.