Tanzania is one of the leading countries endowed with abundant minerals and other precious resources which can among other things be used to accelerate the development of the health sector.
However, the health sector in Tanzania is still faced with several challenges especially in public hospitals that include scarcity of beds, medicines, medical apparatus as well as specialists.
Pregnant women are the most affected group with many forced to sleep on hospital floors due to shortage of beds and medical treatments.
Society Watch Corporation conducted an investigation in collaboration with other health experts and found that there is huge violation of human rights faced by pregnant women.
Society Watch found that five women out of ten women are afraid to get pregnant because of the ‘torture’ they would face in public hospitals.
Speaking to The Guardian in an exclusive interview Society Watch Corporation Chief Executive Officer Simon Mkondya said that, the government policy for pregnant women is good but its implementation is weak.
According to Mkondya, from 99 women who were interviewed said that, they are not satisfied with the services they get from hospitals during delivery.
The women face several violations of human rights including, corruption, delay to get services, brutalities, charged to pay the cost for apparatus, ordered to bring cotton, gloves, needle, soaking and yarn, forced to sleep on the floor, they are also stigmatized and exploited.
An expecting woman, Khamisa Jumanne said health workers solicit money from expecting women instead and “if you don’t have money you will receive poor service.”
For his part, husband of one Mwajuma Omari said he was forced to pay 150,000 for his wife to be admitted for surgery.
Social Watch Chief Executive Officer Simon Mkondya cited that, the findings obtained by White Ribbon Alliance show that pregnant women are also forced to walk a long distance to get health services.
He further detailed that, Rukwa and Singida Region, only 50per cent of pregnant women are able to deliver at a hospital.
Secretary General of Society Watch (SW) Isabela Sosoliso said that Mang’ula Health Centre located in Kilombero Morogoro Region is faced with a dire shortage of beds for pregnant women where by there are only 5 worn out beds in the pregnant ward.
She said in an effort to curb the problem, Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Innocent Mosha decided to collaborate with the citizens of that council to construct beds by using trees from the nearby forest and managed to construct eight beds.
She however said, following the Medical Store Department (MSD) inspections to Mang’ula Heath Centre and found that women are using those beds made from trees, they ordered them removed but didn’t provide any alternatives means to solve the great shortage of beds.
According to Isabela, the price of one bed is between 400,000 to 700,000/- an amount the centre can not be not able to afford.
She went on to say that according to the health workers from Ifakara Health Institute (IHI) in Tanzania, there is scarcity of the medicine Misoprostol used to reduce bleeding.
She said the situation is worsened by age, poverty, long distances from health centre, poor infrastructures and few health workers.
Social Welfare Officer, who is also a Nurse at Muhimbili National Hospital Salama Kibao admitted that pregnant women are badly treated because most health workers didn’t expect to work in that field due to poor academic performance.
She further said that, salary is not a problem to them; the problem is that they are working out of their professionalism.
Salama added that, the health workers are doing well at the first time they joined to the office but later on they work under low performance.
However, a citizen from Ubungo Mziray Omary said that, health workers are not available in their work place at the time required, they are founded in private hospitals where they can earn more money at a day.
He said, he volunteered to take pregnant women to the hospital for them to get health services.
Carolyne Boniface, there is a great harassment especially if you don’t give any cash to the doctors.
She argued that, doctors are supposed to be very attentive to patient’s health like when they consider a patient of heat, because most of the pregnant women who attended to the clinic were just checked their stomach only without being examined their health in general.
For her part Ubungo resident in Dar es Salaam identified by one name of Anastride said, “we need to understand the importance of public hospitals, because when we go to the hospital we are asked to bring many things for delivery such as cotton, gloves, needle, soaking and yarn. Why should we carry all this things to the hospital while it is a government owned health centre.”
One resident from Sinza in Dar es Salaam said that, public hospitals should reduce harassment to patients likewise the government should take responsibility to monitor the whole process of supplying the medicine without any payments.
Interviewed by Social Watch Chief Executive Officer Simon Mkondya, Dr Fatuma Saidi noted that pregnant women are sometimes beaten because they are stubborn, especially those who come to deliver for the first time.
She said what is needed is a platform to speak out about this entire problem in order to get assistance from the society and government itself.
A Gynecologist at Muhimbili National Hospital (MNH) Dr Gelase Kamugisha said that when he was in Holland he witnessed the death of pregnant woman who died in front of specialists, He however said, the specialists were taken to court for legal action.
He explained that many pregnant women are denied of their rights. He said pregnancy is not disease. Pregnant women should not be worrying about their own health. If they are worried it represents the poor care of the doctors around.
He said a pregnant woman should be given the first priority in health services.
Kamugisha castigated habits of some doctors who exhort bribes from expectant mothers stating it is one of the biggest misbehaviours in the health profession.
He further disclosed that, the reason for maternal death is due to poor clinics available, insufficient testing, weak support and lack of medication.
Quoting World Health Organization (WHO), statistics, Kamugisha noted that Dar es Salaam with a population of more than four million people should have other eight hospitals like Muhimbili National Hospital, clarifying that for every 500,000 inhabitants there must be such a hospital like Muhimbili.
According to Dr Kurenje Mbura from Muhimbili National Hospital, one doctor is supposed to serve 5 pregnant woman per day but the ratio of Tanzania doctors to pregnant is 1: 40 up to 60 pregnant a day, something which threatens health of mothers.
He pointed out that the Ministry of health is faced with a lot of challenges including insufficient beds for patients and shortage of health workers.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
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