Chikhwawa district hospital in a bad state

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Chikhwawa District Hospital

As Malawi’s health sector continues to crumble, reports say that Chikhwawa district hospital is in a bad state as most buildings at the facility are old and tiny hence unable to meet the growing population of the district.

According to a source who asked for anonymity, the mortuary at the hospital is small and was built to keep six bodies but it is now keeping more bodies.

Chikhwawa District Hospital
Chikhwawa District Hospital: In crisis.

Apart from having old buildings, the facility has no potable water and reliable electricity and this is said to be contributing to maternal deaths in the district.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended that every health facility must have buildings that are in good state and Chikhwawa district hospital, being below the recommendations, should have been closed.

Ministry of health spokesperson Adrian Chikumbe said the ministry is aware of the problem but it has no plans to rehabilitate the facility as it has no money.

“We are aware that Chikhwawa district hospital has old buildings that need renovation but at the moment government has no money to renovate the facility,” said Chikumbe.

He further said that government know that most hospitals in the country need renovations like Chikhwawa district hospital but since it has no money all it is doing now is to make sure that the hospitals have enough health personnel and equipment.