Phirilongwe Health Centre receives medical assistant
About 20 000 people around Phirilongwe Health Centre in Traditional Authority (T/A) Chilipa in Mangochi, who were denied access to health services due to the absence of a clinician, can now a heave sigh of relief following the deployment of a medical assistant at the health centre.
The health facility has been operating without a medical assistant for over three months following the departure of the previous one who is reportedly at school. It closed its out-patient department (OPD) as a result.
Since it stopped rendering OPD treatment, communities have been crying foul over lack of medical help resulting in the death four people.
Vice-chairperson of the health advisory committee, Brandi Sabiti said the medical assistant was deployed following a petition which the communities presented to the District Health Office (DHO) in December last year after being empowered by the National Initiative for Civic Education (Nice) Trust.
“Apart from Nice, let me also thank ‘The Nation, the edition of Tuesday December 22 2015, for carrying the story of the interface meeting head-lined “Communities denied health services in Mangochi.
“Health officials visited us after the story.”
When contacted, Mangochi District Hospital spokesperson, Harlod Kabuluzi said the deployment followed communities’ complaint that the area was registering preventable deaths. n
