Our correspondent Simon Muchemwa spent seven hours at the hospital on Friday and told us there was a disturbing lack of compassion to patients.
‘The attitude of some of the nurses and doctors left much to be desired. I think bad attitudes of nurses and doctors, and filth, are the two biggest problems besetting the hospitals,’ Muchemwa said.
Our correspondent gained uninterrupted access to wards, the casualty department and some examination rooms and found blood on the floors, overflowing bins and used syringes, sanitary pads and bandages lying on the floor, all posing a health hazard for other patients.
‘What I experienced and saw at the hospital can amount to deep routed failings, routine neglect and patients left for hours without being attended to. Patients, some visibly in pain and needing urgent treatment, were made to wait for hours to see medical staff,’ Muchemwa added.
When our correspondent arrived at Parirenyatwa at around 3pm he found approximately 80 people queuing in the waiting area. Of the several examination rooms at the hospital’s outpatients department, only one had a doctor in it who was attending to patients, another two had nurses who were seeing patients.
It has long been alleged that doctors spend more time attending to patients at their private surgeries. The hospital, which recently received a fresh coat of paint, badly needs a management team that spends more time inspecting its facilities.
‘Its clear there is poor supervision at the hospital as evidenced by the falling standards in the wards and the casualty department. Generally I think Parirenyatwa is a good example of a medical facility falling into ruin through shameful neglect,’ Muchemwa said. – Swradio africa
Post published in: News