Windhoek
Government has revealed plans to take over the Onandjokwe Lutheran Hospital by the end of this month, which will officially make it a state hospital.
In August last year the Ministry of Health and Social Services signed an agreement with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia (ELCIN) to transfer ownership of the run-down hospital to the state, with the idea to improve its services and ageing infrastructure.
The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Social Services, Andrew Ndishishi, yesterday confirmed that the end of the month is the deadline for the government to take charge of running the hospital from Elcin’s Lutheran Medical Services, for a period of 99 years.
Over the years hospital staff have demonstrated over non-payment of salaries and conditions of employment, among others.
The hospital that is more than a 100 years old is run by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia but receives funding from government. Currently, the institution receives N$193 million annually to cover running costs, including salaries, which gobble up about N$160 million of its total budget.
Ndishishi said the church is unable to mobilise sufficient capital to renovate the buildings and put them at “appropriate health standards”.
“For us as government we are not happy with the status of the building. Last year we negotiated and concluded an agreement with the church for the government to take over the hospital and make sure the buildings are renovated,” explained the health and social services permanent secretary.
He said government is currently constructing a new maternity ward to replace the old one, adding that further renovations will follow to put Onandjokwe hospital on par with other state hospitals.
He also said that more staff would be recruited.
In May this year the Minister of Health and Social Services, Dr Bernhard Haufiku, when on a familiarisation tour of Oshikoto Region was shocked at the dilapidated state of the hospital.
Apart from its unmaintained state, the hospital needs general medical officers, specialist nurses, dentists, physiotherapists, pharmacists and orthopaedic staff.