By Philemon Jambaya
Chitungwiza Central Hospital located about 30 kilometres southwest of Harare has continued to privatize most of its departments.
Chitungwiza hospital has up to date privatized its pharmacy, laboratory, mortuary and radiology departments. The mortuary is now being run by Doves Funeral Services while the radiology department is under Baines Group.
Ward 3 is currently under renovations so as to be privatized and plans to privatise the laundry department are at an advanced stage. This ward has been formally a surgical ward. Patients from ward 3 have been moved to an observation ward.
These developments come at a time when the government is heavily taxing its citizens in the recent past. Despite the heavy taxes the government is now asking residents to pay more for healthcare raising doubts about the government’s policy competencies and sensitivity to the plight of its citizens.
Chitungwiza Residents Trust (CHITREST) has condemned the privatization as it is being done without the consultation of relevant stakeholders.
“The privatization of Chitungwiza central hospital has been done without consultations to critical stakeholders meaning that even children below 5 years and those adults above 65 years, who in terms of the health policy are exempted from paying for medical provisions, are now expected to pay for such primary health-care provisions. The basic human rights that are to be provided for by any government are health-care, water, education, food and shelter. This privatization drive is against the provision of these five basic human rights.” CHITREST said in a press statement.
Ordinary residents in Chitungwiza complained about the development at the central hospital as they say that it does not benefit ordinary citizens.
“We do not even understand what is really going on at the hospital, I don’t think those developments will benefit ordinary citizens like me” said Kudakwashe Bangwayo
Chitungwiza Residents Trust (CHITREST) outlined some implications to the residents in the dormitory town of Chitungwiza In their press release
“The implications of this privatization of a critical health-care provision centre to a common resident or citizen are the limited accessibility to primary health-care (affordability) and poor health-care service provision to the citizenry. To most of the medical staff at the central hospital, the gross effect is that they are now earning less than some non-medical staff employed by private entities, for example, cleaning and office orderly staff. This has seriously affected the institution by negatively affecting the morale of medical staff hence reducing their zeal to professionally render their services to patients
Chitungwiza Residents’ Trust (Chitrest) is not against any form of partnerships in the health-care sector, but is opposed to any arrangement or union, whether private or public that unconstructively affects the access of primary health-care provision to the citizenry. Section 76 (1) of the constitution of Zimbabwe gives every citizen or permanent resident the right to basic health-care services, including reproductive health-care services. “CHITREST said in the statement.
Zimbabweans are already struggling to access these services from private providers who are more concerned with maximising profits rather than considering the needs of the poorer members of the society. With medical aid providers reportedly failing to pay service providers it is baffling who is going to fund these health services. Zimbabweans reeling under economic hardships are unable to cough up the exorbitant fees demanded upfront by private health care providers.
Chitungwiza Hospital authorities said that denied that their actions amounted to privatization but a partnership to uplift the services at the hospital
“It is not privatization but a partnership with interested partners, we want to uplift the services at the hospital to be services of world class,” said Saranharwo
With top ranking officials seeking treatment outside the country recently there is no doubt that even the government has lost confidence in both the public and private health care system locally.
