By Alvine Kapitako
OKAHANDJA – Accessible health care services could be a dream come true for residents of Vyf Rand informal settlement in Okahandja, as there are plans to construct a clinic in the settlement this year.
The Okahandja constituency councillor, Steve Biko Booys, said in an interview with New Era on Friday that plans to construct the clinic in the informal settlement, which has a population of about 4 000 inhabitants, are at an advanced stage.
Booys could, however, not say when exactly the clinic will be constructed, stating that it would depend on the administrative process.
“We have been fighting for a clinic for Vyf Rand for a long time now,” said Booys, who explained that the building plan for the facility has been approved and that they are only negotiating on getting a large structure as opposed to the one that has been approved.
“In fact, the clinic has been approved. The only thing is just some technicalities. So, in the first quarter we will finish with the negotiations of getting a larger one because there is a definite need for a larger facility,” the youthful councillor explained.
New Era also spoke to Vyf Rand residents about the clinic that would be built. They said they depend on the mobile clinic that caters for the community on designated days. The residents said Vyf Rand is a big settlement and they are in dire need of a clinic.
“We really need a clinic. When we are sick, we have to walk to the location to access health care services,” said Ndinelago Ndove.
“We need a clinic because we pay N$10 to go to the clinic and at night we pay N$70 to go to the hospital,” said Fillemon Stephanus.
Another resident of Vyf Rand, Jossy Sheetekela said the promise to build a clinic in the settlement is not something new as that “song has been sang for years already”. “Even with electricity, they said the same thing. We will believe it when they start building the clinic,” said Sheetekela.
Booys also said that renovations of the Nau-Aib clinic are complete. Renovations started in May last year. Nau-Aib resident, Domingo Kanomba told New Era that he is content that the clinic has been expanded and renovated. “But, the problem is the workers (employees) of the clinic. They do not care about offering quality services to the people. They do not attend to patients on time,” he said.
Kanomba added that service provision is so slow that patients have to wait up to five hours to be attended to. “We are thankful that the facility has been expanded but the staff must attend to patients speedily, especially those who are seriously ill,” said Kanomba.
Furthermore, Booys said the town relies heavily on the Okahandja hospital which is “under pressure”. The hospital is currently being upgraded, Booys noted. “It (hospital) is a reasonably small facility but with the upgrade it will become larger,” he said.
“Given the location of Okahandja most of the accidents take place around the town so that even places more pressure on Okahandja hospital,” said Booys, who added that the hospital was initially built to cater for about 2000 and the population that has increased drastically is currently over 40 000.
“So, there is only one privately owned medical facility, the medical park. So we definitely need a larger facility in Vyf Rand,” stressed Booys.