Government in partnership with the ministry of health has constructed a modern intensive care unit (ICU) at Hoima regional referral hospital worth Ugx. 8.4billion to serve over 3.5 million people from the nine districts of Hoima, Buliisa, Kiryandongo, Kakumiro, Kagadi, Kibaale, Masindi, Kikuube, and Hoima City.
The completed three-storied ICU facility will include the administration block and dialysis section, theatre, Isolation rooms, High Dependency Unit, Recovery room, changing room, office space, conference hall, Toilets and the ICU itself with an 8-bed capacity.
While supervising the just completed facility Doreen Nshabohurira, a communication officer from the Ministry of Health under the Uganda COVID-19 Response and Emergency Preparedness Project (UCREPP) highlighted that the ministry of health noticed a need of establishing an ICU facility to boost easy access and appropriate health care services for the people Bunyoro and Uganda in general.
“When fully functional, the facility will be a big boost towards the realization of appropriate health care services to the people of Bunyoro sub-region. After statistics indicating that at least 30 patients in need of Intensive care Unit services are admitted every week in Hoima referral Hospital, yet it does not possess the specialized infrastructure and equipment meant to handle patients in need of ICU services,” Nshabohurira said .
The Acting Director of Hoima Regional Referral Hospital Dr Ibrahim Bwanga, said that patients with ailments like Kidney and respiratory-related complications have been facing challenges in accessing specialized care but with the newly constructed ICU facility such patients will be catered for and their lived saved.
Bwanga noted that since the region does not have the specialized facilities with the necessary infrastructure and equipment to handle ICU services,Once operational, the intensive care unit facility will play a crucial role in managing epidemic outbreaks and urgent disease situations, particularly in sample collection from within and other neighbouring districts hence reaffirming government’s commitment to enhancing health facilities and service delivery in Uganda.
