The Rotary Club of Makanga in formation has donated essential supplies to children at Kabale Regional Referral Hospital’s paediatric ward to improve their welfare and ease the burden on parents and caregivers struggling to meet their basic needs.
The donated items include clothes, diapers, soap, toilet paper, soda and other drinks to support children receiving treatment and their mothers.
Speaking during the donation exercise at the Hospital Premises in Kabale Municipality on Monday, the Kabale Deputy Resident District Commissioner, who is also the president-designate of the Rotary Club of Makanga in formation ,Micheal Muramira Kyakashari, said the initiative followed a visit to the paediatric ward and consultations with hospital authorities to identify the most pressing needs of vulnerable children and their caregivers.
He said the club prioritised the ward after discovering that some parents could not afford basic necessities, including soap, diapers and warm clothing for their children.
He added that the donation was intended to complement government efforts to provide healthcare services, particularly to children from disadvantaged families who lack access to additional support.
He pledged that the club would sustain its support to the paediatric ward through continued interventions aimed at improving the welfare of vulnerable children.
CUE IN KYAKASHARI… ON DONATION… RR/ENG//
Christine Barigye Tina Tukakira, a pastor at Kabale Soulwinner Church and the chief launcher of the initiative, said the donation demonstrated love and compassion for vulnerable children and their caregivers.
Tukakira said such acts of kindness restore hope among families facing difficult circumstances, adding that helping vulnerable people was part of her daily passion.
She said the support would reassure caregivers that they were not alone in caring for their children and pledged to support efforts to sustain the club’s activities.
Tukakira called for continued acts of kindness and community support to help vulnerable children and their families overcome the challenges they face.
CUE IN PASTOR TUKAKIRA… ON DONATION… RR/ENG//
Meanwhile, Pidson Kamugisha, a nursing officer at the paediatric ward at Kabale Regional Referral Hospital, has called for increased support for nutrition care, saying about 60 per cent of admissions at the ward are attributed to malnutrition.
Kamugisha said the hospital admits between 100 and 200 children every month, with an average of five to 10 patients admitted daily. He said the duration of hospitalisation varies depending on the severity of each child’s condition, with some requiring prolonged treatment.
He said that although the hospital has adequate medical personnel, functional beds and trained health workers, a shortage of specialised therapeutic feeds remains a major challenge in managing children with severe malnutrition.
Kamugisha explained that some children who recover and are discharged from the hospital relapse within weeks because their caregivers cannot afford or access the specialised feeds required to sustain their recovery at home.
He said the challenge is particularly pronounced among children who have not attained the required weight to transition to other available therapeutic foods.
CUE IN KAMUGISHA… ON THE MATTER… RR/ENG//
Kamugisha also raised concern about the social challenges affecting some children, noting that many are cared for by their grandmothers, who often lack the resources needed to provide adequate care.
He said some children lack warm clothing to protect them from the cold, while their caregivers struggle to maintain proper hygiene, particularly when caring for children suffering from diarrhoeal diseases.
Kamugisha said providing adequate nutrition supplies, hygiene materials, diapers and clothing would improve children’s recovery and reduce the risk of repeated hospital admissions.
CUE IN KAMUGISHA… ON CHALLENGES… ENG//
