By Iddi Basaijja: Mothers and young women in Rwenzori are calling on elected leaders to advocate for improved health care services in their communities.
Despite actively participating in elections, women say, communities, especially those in hard-to-reach areas, continue to struggle with accessing essential health services.
In Kasese, women are demanding the establishment of a referral hospital, emphasizing that it is justifiable for a district with a population of over one million to have a larger, better-equipped hospital.
Joselyne Masika, a resident of Umoja Cell in Nyakasanga Ward, Kasese Municipality, urges that the uptake of services such as family planning remains low, and attributes this to the absence of enough government-aided health centers.
According to her, this situation, coupled with a lack of information, contributes to the high rates of pregnancies among young girls in the district.
“Here, we have Kasese Municipal HCIII, but the numbers there are overwhelming, and so some young people shy away from seeking services there, and in the end turn to these clinics or, at worst, abandon seeking health services.” She noted
In Mbunga sub county, women say they face significant challenges in accessing healthcare due to poor road infrastructure. Traditional stretchers are often used to transport patients to health centers in the lowlands.
The sub-county, which was carved out of Kilembe and Rukoki sub-counties in 2020, has a population of over 10,000 people and has one health Centre II located in Mbunga parish.
Gladys Kabugho, a resident, noted that they trek more than 10 kilometres to Kilembe sub-county to access improved health services. Others have to incur transport cost of not less than 20,000 Ugandan Shillings to reach medical facilities in Kasese town, posing a significant barrier to accessing timely health services.
“Some women are still using traditional birth attendants and herbs to deal ith healthcare service gaps and absolutely this is risky, so we demand our leaders to prioritise health care services.” She noted
Joselyne Mbambu, the chairperson of the women council for Namugha North-west, says that pregnant mothers and families with children toil to access health services when the need arises.
Additionally, she pointed out that most households are unable to afford ambulance services, and to address these challenges, she and the community are calling for the establishment of more facilities in the area.
Biira Joy, a resident of Katoke 1 Village in Bugoye sub-county is calling on elected leaders to prioroitse the elevation of Katoke HC II to better meet the growing health demands in the area.
The mother of twohighlights that residents currently have to trek more than 5 kilometres to Bugoye HCIII for improved health services. The situation is particularly dire for pregnant mothers, especially in emergencies during night hours, when access to immediate medical care becomes even more challenging.
“We are now asking our leaders to prioritise health, we need better facilities in this area, especially upgrading of our health centres, so that we can have better services” Biira noted
In Bundibugyo, residents decry the poor state of the Bundibugyo General Hospital and absence of better health centres notably in the mountainous Bughendera County.
Bundibugyo General Hospital was built in the late 1960’s, designed to accommodate about 26 in-patients but this number has more than doubled.
Administrators at the facility says the hospital serves more than 40,000 people per month.
Daphine Masika, a resident Hakitengya Town Council, say they have to travel to Fort Portal Regional Referral Hospital to access specialized services such as X-Ray. She says this situation makes obtaining these services expensive for community members.
As a result, many women and families are unable to afford the costs associated with traveling and accessing specialized healthcare, which hampers their ability to receive comprehensive medical care when needed.
“This is the biggest government facility in the district, but when you look at the service being offered inside, its poor, there no drugs available most of the time.” Masika noted
Sarah Kabagenyi, working with Bundibugyo District Women with Disabilities Living with HIV Association says the lack of healthcare services hits hard, PWD’s notably the female.
She says most PWD’s notably those with mobility challenges cannot trek for long distances and thus suffer to their medical conditions. She demands leaders to prioritise improved healthcare notably for mothers and PWD’s.
“Access to family planning services remains a priority but in absence of such health services nearer to our young people, then they are at risk of being pregnant at tender ages or being infected with HIV” Kabagenyi noted
The Bundibugyo District chairperson, Robert Tibakunirwa, recently expressed concern over the delayed renovation of the general hospital despite the government’s pledge made in 2021. Sarah Ithungu Baleke, who woman the Kasese Woman MP seat in the recently concluded election says improving access to health services will be her priority once she takes on parliamentary duties.
