Government ‘ignores’ health facility for 16 years

Despite shortage of dependable health facilities in most rural areas of the country, government has ironically ‘ignored’ Mbalama Health Post in Mangochi for 15 years.

The facility, constructed by Malawi Social Action Fund (Masaf) funds under the initiative of the community members, is situated in the area of Traditional Authority (T/A) Bwananyambi with about 40 villages in its projected catchment area.

Since its opening in 1999, government has failed to consider upgrading the structure, which has been relying on health surveillance assistants (HSAs) to treat patients.

No nurse or medical assistant has ever been posted to the facility despite having six decent houses specifically constructed to accommodate them.

T/A Bwananyambi said in an interview this week government’s approach to the issue is impeding his people’s right to health and urged authorities to speed up the process of upgrading the facility.

Said the chief: “I have personally taken this issue up [of upgrading the facility and deploying medical staff] with all relevant authorities, including past presidents,  but to no avail. If this was made into a feasible health facility it would have been serving about 36 villages.”

But government has defended itself, saying the health post was completed without input from the district health office (DHO) and it is not an established health facility for the Ministry of Health to deploy qualified medical personnel.

Ministry of Health spokesperson Henry Chimbali referred the matter to Mangochi DHO communications officer Arnold Mndalira who said Mbalama was not an established health facility; hence, the ministry’s failure to deploy qualified medical personnel.

He said: “The structure does not meet the laid standards to be a full health centre. For staff to be sent to a facility the ministry first establishes the facility and deploys staff according to the need and Mbalama is a health post under Mkumba Health Centre.”

However, he said plans are underway to upgrade the health post which is currently being renovated.

Currently, the DHO is refurbishing the facility with funds from the Icelandic International Development Agency (ICEIDA) and contractors are on site installing solar powered water and constructing pit latrines.

“After assessing the facility the DHO will apply to ministry to upgrade Mbalama to dispensary or health centre level,” said Mndalira, adding that it has taken long to upgrade the structure because procedures were not followed.

He stated that HSAs were doing a commendable job after being trained in community case management to serve the under five population during emergencies as the area is hard to reach.

Following the development, communities around the health facility walk long distances to Mkumba Health Centre or Nyambi Health Centre, which is under Machinga DHO and Mulibwanji Community Hospital for treatment.

But health rights activist Maziko Matemba said problems people around Mbalama face are due to centralised power of authority, which has to change.

“This is against people’s right to health which is one of fundamental human rights obligation of the right to life which government needs to provide as a duty-bearer,” said Matemba, who is also executive director of Health N Rights Education Programme (HREP).

Martha Kwataine of the Malawi Healthy Equity Network (Mhen) observed that the challenge with most projects of such nature is that they are done without collaborating with DHOs.

“DHOs and MoH are supposed to plan and project what deployment will be like. Yes, the right of the communities could be violated, but it is also a lesson for us as a nation,” said Kwataine.

She added: “These are projects that were highly politicized- where politicians decided where a health facility ought to be without consulting the DHOs who under normal circumstances would have a projection of what health facilities ought to be constructed in their District Implementation Plans. Technocrats must be left to do their work.”

She said as long as political interference is tolerated a blame game will always exist and there would be nobody to be held accountable.