Health Facility Development

Summary

The activities conducted as part of our Health Facility Development programme are widely varied and overlap considerably with our other projects. K4C has supported more than 25 health facilities across Uganda and Tanzania since 2008 through the placement of over 500 long-term and 150 short-term professional volunteers to run training programmes and by sustainably investing over £400,000 in equipment and infrastructure. The facilities we have supported range from small rural health centres to large urban hospitals. Our main areas of focus have been maternity, paediatrics, neonatal intensive care, operating theatres and rehabilitation departments, however we have also supported mental health, orthopaedics, surgery, general medicine and outpatients.

Capacity Building

Our short and long-term professional volunteers conduct formal training and/or work alongside local staff to exchange valuable knowledge, skills and experience. Our medical, nursing and midwifery volunteers have focused on areas such as respectful care, managing complex deliveries, patient observations, triage, operative techniques, surgical safety, prescribing practices, rehabilitation practices, counselling and implementing infection prevention and control measures. This knowledge exchange has greatly improved the level of care received by patients and has reduced levels of patient morbidity and mortality. Volunteers have also gained huge amounts of knowledge, skills and experience which they can use to improve their practice in the UK.

Equipment Provision

K4C has provided over £210,000 worth of medical equipment to health facilities, ranging from EVA and coal coagulation devices (for cervical screening and treatment), foot scanners, BP machines, thermometers, dopplers, delivery beds and autoclaves through to vaginal speculums, sutures and waste disposal units. We endeavour to ensure that all equipment is appropriate for the local setting and is sustainable, in line with the focus of our Biomedical Engineering Project. We ensure that all staff receive appropriate training on its cleaning and maintenance to maximise its lifespan and avoid putting patients at risk, and ensure that all required consumables and spare parts are readily available and affordable.

Infrastructure Development

K4C has invested over £220,000 into developing infrastructure at health facilities and in some schools. All investments in infrastructure are negotiated with local partners and are designed with sustainability in mind. Some of our main previous projects are listed below:

· Mulago National Referral Hospital: Developing a high dependency unit and building a guesthouse (as a social enterprise for income generation).

· Kasangati Health Centre: Renovating the maternity department and operating theatre and building a post-operative ward and a path to connect it to the theatre.

· Hoima Regional Referral Hospital: Building staff accommodation on-site to facilitate provision of 24/7 emergency obstetric services.

· Fort Portal Regional Referral Hospital: Renovating and equipping the neonatal intensive care unit, renovating the rehabilitation department to establish the Ninsiima Centre for the Rehabilitation of People with Disabilities, building a paediatric rehabilitation facility and a new patient waiting area, and fitting of television screens for health education media.

· Kisenyi Health Centre: Renovating the operating theatre and maternity department

· Kagote Health Centre: Renovating the maternity, outpatient and laboratory departments, building a sheltered patient waiting area and establishing a cervical screening department.

· Kasusu Health Centre: Renovating the maternity department and establishing a cervical screening room and a diabetic clinic (see below for more detail).

· Canon Apollo School: Building of a bespoke toilet block for use by physically disabled children and renovation of the children’s accommodation.