‘Low budget chokes healthcare services’
Karonga District Health Office (DHO) says the K355 million annual budget funded by the central government is not sufficient to buy medical supplies and run daily operations for the district’s 21 health centres.
Karonga District Hospital administrator Clement Gonthi said this on Wednesday during a meeting Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP) of Karonga Diocese facilitated between hospital senior staff and community leaders from traditional authorities (T/As) Mwakaboko and Wasambo to find solutions affecting healthcare service delivery in the district.
He said: “It is true that there is erratic supply of essential medical drugs in our health facilities due to low budget. We get K355 million per year, translating to K29 million per month.
“Again, the budget has been affected by the increase in fuel prices whose allocation was K4 million per month for our ambulances, but we have stretched it to K9 million.”
Gonthi’s sentiments followed complaints from Wasambo Area Development Committee (ADC) member Pastor Harry Mhango and Mwakaboko ADC chairperson George Chitete who said people are usually told to buy drugs from private pharmacies whenever they go to public health facilities.
“It is sad to note that every time patients go to health facilities around Chilumba they are told that there is no medicine,” said Mhango.
On his part, Chitete said apart from drugs being in short supply, foreigners from neigbouring Tanzania scramble for the same meagre resources in health facilities of Ngana, Iponga and Kaporo.
In a separate interview, Ministry of Health spokesperson Adrian Chikumbe said funding to district hospitals does not go through the ministry, but comes directly from Treasury through district councils.
Karonga CCJP desk officer Louis Nkhata said there is need for collaboration to address funding discrepancies in public hospitals.
With funding from Norwegian Church Aid and DanChurch Aid, CCJP is implementing Fighting Inequalities in T/As Mwakaboko and Wasambo in the district.
