Although they were earlier reports that Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital in Francistown has a backlog of gynaecology operations caused by shortages in equipment, medication and blood, the Mayor of Francistown, Ephraim Maiketso, has revealed that the on-going Mass Gynaecology Operations Campaign in the country has proved to be working very well in the fight against cancer for the people of Francistown.
The campaign began last year as part of the Ministry of Health’s efforts to fight cervical cancer. Briefing a full council meeting on health issues in Francistown last week, the Mayor said 1500 women went for the operation since the campaign was initiated. He said that from the 300 histopathology results that were reviewed this year, 60 women were found to be having cancer of the cervix. He said the detection of the infection in these women is a tremendous success as it will help them fight the infection before it advances. “For these women, the operations were life saving as cancer was caught before it advanced and indeed that is a job well done. There is a strong need for the public to take into cognition the fact that cancer is a silent killer we face as a society,” the Mayor said. Touching on the diarrhoea outbreak, which affected some parts of the country several months ago, the mayor said that in Francistown they managed to prevent the outbreak before it spread. He said that although the city did not experience any serious outbreaks, they were some reports in clinics and admissions at the hospital.
“There were reported cases in the clinics and admissions at Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital. In order to fight the problem, the Health Management Team drafted a preparedness and response plan that involved all stake holders, such as the Environmental Health Department, Nyangabwe Referral Hospital, Institute of Health Sciences, NGO’s such as ACHAP, Private Sectors and Traditional Healers,” he said.
He added that all necessary supplies were prepared and distributed to the facilities in enough amounts before the epidemic spread. Maiketso said that health talks were also intensified in conveying the messages to the community on diarrhoea prevention and control measures. He added that all children that came to the facilities with signs and symptoms of diarrhoea were given priority for swift diagnosis and treatment.
“The number of admissions in Nyangabwe Hospital was being monitored on daily basis and reported to the Ministry on weekly basis. With all these efforts, it was possible to minimize the diarrhoea cases and deaths.
He, however, warned that even if it was possible to convey necessary messages to the community, diarrhoea outbreak should be always guarded as it can occur at any time of the year.
