KCH mortuary shut down as bodies rot
Kamuzu Central Hospital (KCH) mortuary at Malawi’s major referral hospital has been shut down after three of its coldrooms have broken down.
The mortuary which has four coldrooms is left with only one coldroom in working condition. This situation has resulted in dead bodies piling up on the hospital and consequently leading to suspension of services at the morgue.
Our reporter this morning witnessed hospital staff removing decomposed corpses from the mortuary floors.
She says the mortuary is full since the other three cold rooms are broken down including the one which police uses to store corpses of unidentified persons.
There was outrage on the social media directed at government when Malawi Nation broke the story this morning with one reader Mwai Chikokeni saying: “Last wik wesday tinali komweko koma fungo loipa limene limatuluka m’menepo mmmmmmm even anthu amene amagwira ntchito kumene kuja sali kuntchito ai chosecho asisi ali bizy kugawa zingwe zokokera mbuzi shaaaaaaa! [Last week on Wednesday I was there but the stench of dead bodies was unbearable, the working conditions of those manning the mortuary is inhuamane yet our sister is busy distributing goats]“
While Anderson Chimkwita on Malawi Nation Facebook page wrote: “Why cant she spend part of her daily allowances to maintain this mortuary.”
KCH is one of Malawi’s public health facilities facing acute shortage of essential drugs. Recently the hospital was rocked by staff strikes.
Effects of cash gate
this is so sad, i cry for my warm heart of africa
This is really shocking and unwelcome. But, if we just stop at accusing Government we might be missing the point. Its a fact that some Government money has been misused. But can we understand as to what have been the priorities of the Hospital administration with the few resources at their disposal? Couldn’t we be surprised that allowances and some ORT expenses were prioritized over such important matters? This problem is no mere result of cashgate. We need to critically analyze this situation because it couldn’t be unique to KCH.
How on earth can anyone reason that the hospital could have prioritized fixing morgue when this is the same hospital that raised the alarm about shortages a year ago. I had respect for JB, but she has lost my trust. The money for distributing maize and cows are not a problem, but she has no time for the dead. Yet you hear her preaching “god, God, God” What god would hear such a person. Angry citizen
Kodi chipatala chipangidwa manage bwanji pamene sichinapatsidwe ndalama zokwanila. zonnse zapita kukagulira njinga zamoto kupatsa the only counted malawi citizens.
This is sad so sad. How is it so that the three cold-rooms have been broken at once? I wonder, does maintenance work take place in these hospitals of ours? This is pathetic you mean we will just be using the facilities left by our founding fathers without maintaining them, enhancing them or even bringing in new facilities? ooooh no! Many have talked about AMAI, without over-emphasising AMAYIWA ali useless ndithu ndipo atikwana. Koma about the question raised about the priorities of the Hospital’s Administration. This to some extent and the biggest extent if we may say TRUE. Amalawi ambirife we think about ourselves and our families and such people are BAD and akutibwezera pambuyo we would have been somewhere doing something. Let’s say, for example, if the funds a the hospital were used moyenerera and the Morgue was maintained sibwezi tikukamba izi lero.
KCH administration is underfunded like any other govt institution for close to 2 years. Alarms wre raised and ignored.