Maravi

Dr Kaseba responds to talk on Sata's health

Dr Kaseba responds to talk on Sata's health
By Kombe Chimpinde and Ernest Chanda
Sun 01 Apr. 2012, 13:00 CAT

FIRST Lady Dr Christine Kaseba says public talk about President Michael Sata's health while he was in India signified that there was a lot of idle time in the country. And UTH managing director Dr Lackson Kasonka says staff at the institution should not be expected to go out and look for patients with complicated medical conditions like that of Robiana.

Responding to questions from journalists after she visited cancer patient Robiana Muteka at the University Teaching Hospital yesterday, Dr Kaseba challenged the government to create employment for the people.

She said there was a lot people could do other than talk about the health of others.

"People always want something to talk about. And the issue of the President's health, it is not something which is new. I am sure some of you were part of those that were writing before the elections that ‘Oh, Mr Sata had collapsed in Western Province'. ‘Mr Sata has a very grave disease he was not going to live, he was going to die'," Dr Kaseba said.

"So we have become used, it just shows that people are idle and if they had something to do they will be able to concentrate on what they are supposed to be doing. But there is a lot of idle time and I guess it is a challenge to start looking for work for them. But there is plenty that can be done apart from talking about somebody's health. Let's rejoice in people's health, let's rejoice in people's successes and let's learn to hold each other's hands when somebody is down."

And earlier after visiting Robiana who was successfully operated on by UTH medical personnel last week, Dr Kaseba said the exercise showed that Zambia's health personnel had a lot of skill.

Dr Kaseba commended the doctors who operated on Robiana, saying there was a lot of public expectation that he could probably be evacuated to South Africa for specialist treatment.

"What they have done just goes to show that we have got a lot of skill here, we have got the expertise. What we may lack are finer technology and some of the equipment that might be able to really push UTH to be doing what it is supposed to be doing," she said.

"And this case has demonstrated that UTH is really a tertiary medical centre. My appeal is just to the ministry, to the President to look into the plight of UTH and equip it to be able to offer the standards of care that they are supposed to be doing."

Dr Kaseba urged medical staff in all provinces to refer all complicated cases to UTH before they could think of any other referral centre.

The first lady also visited the hospital's renovated low cost Ward G11.

And earlier, Dr Kaseba conversed with Robiana, and later with his mother, Joyce Muteka.

And when asked why it took President Sata's directive to have Robiana operated on, Dr Kasonka said medical staff should not be expected to hunt for patients.

"The public must understand that UTH doesn't go into the field to hunt for patients, we are a referral centre. Patients are referred to us, so if Robiana was not referred to us at the right time, what do we do?" asked Dr Kasonka.

"We shouldn't have gone to Livingstone to hunt for Robiana because besides, there are many other patients with different ailments. What we cannot do as a hospital is to say ‘come, we want to treat you'. From our standpoint as health practitioners, someone has a right to live with whatever condition they have, it's up to them to initiate the process of coming. It's not me as a doctor to insist they must be treated."

Labels: HEALTHCARE, MICHAEL SATA

posted by MrK @ 1:11 PM