The Rotary Club of Lilongwe has donated Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) worth MK2 million to Mtengowanthenga Mission Hospital in Dowa district.
The club made the donation on Saturday as a response to a call made by the hospital which was falling short of the equipment in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.
As part of the donation, the Club has donated 1000 surgical face masks and 30 PPE Suits.
Speaking after presenting the donation, Rotary Club of Lilongwe President William Matambo, said as a club they felt obliged to respond to the call by the hospital as it is under its area of focus.
Matambo said though the pandemic has impacted the economic status of its members, the club saw it wise to push to its limits to raise money to procure the PPE.
“As a club we believe in service above self therefore regardless that everyone is struggling financially but we saw the need to help out. Our donation was a response to a letter from the hospital so even if this wasn’t in our plans, we had to try our best to help out”, Matambo said.
On behalf of the health facility, Mtengowanthenga Mission Hospital administrator and officer in-charge, Sister Dr. Eva Kangaude, said she was happy that their plea got a positive response through the Rotary Club of Lilongwe.
Sister Dr. Kangaude said the hospital administration is under pressure due to scarcity of protective equipment as its budget for the same couldn’t stand for a long time since the equipment is expensive.
“We are very thankful that we have received this donation today as per our request to have PPE for our staff members. This donation will go a long way to protect our team as they will be able to protect themselves from Covid-19. Previously we only could afford to give PPE to members of staff in the surgical ward but this changes everything.
“We therefore call for other well-wishers to make similar donations for us to continue serving the public regardless of the pandemic”, she said.
The hospital was opened in opened in 1979 and currently has over 162 staff members. Mtengowanthenga’s catchment area is Dowa and surrounding areas. The hospital serves close to 78000 people.
