NAPAK: St. Kizito hospital in Matany in Napak district is counting losses after losing eight External Fix Setter machines worth 24 million shillings to gunshot patients. External Fix Setter machines are used to fix broken bones through external fixation, a surgical method for keeping bones from moving so that a fracture can heal properly.
St. Kizito hospital in Matany is currently registering an increasing number of patients with gunshot wounds due to the escalation of insecurity in the region. Because there wasn’t enough room at the hospital, the staff decided to send patients home to finish their treatment.
Dr. John Bosco Nsubuga, the medical superintendent of St. Kizito Hospital Matany, says that they have lost eight External Fix Setter machines for patients. Nsubuga said gunshot wounds always take about three weeks to heal, but due to limited space in the hospital, they are forced to release patients who return home with some medical kits.
He noted that many patients who stay far away lack transport to return for review and hand over the medical kits after use. According to Dr. Nsubuga, some patients are sometimes forced to use untrained personnel to remove the external fixators, which may end up endangering them.
Dr. Nsubuga also raised the concern that many of their patients have defaulted on paying hospital dues, which has caused them a loss of 274 million shillings since 2021. He reveals that treating a gunshot wounded patient costs about 2 million shillings, but the victim only pays 100,000 shillings and the hospital clears the balances.
He observes that after the treatment, the patients tend to escape without clearing the subsidized cost of 15 percent for the medical bills. He said most of the defaulters are vulnerable women and children who are stricken by hunger and sometimes even lack money to transport themselves back home after treatment.
In June 2022, the hospital management requested 600 million shillings from the government to treat gunshot patients. The president promised to support the facility with the required amount to mitigate the financial burden of medical expenses. The St. Kizito hospital was founded by the Comboni missionaries under the German Missourian organization in 1970 to meet the health needs of the Karamojong.