Kabale Health Providers Decry Shortage of Specialists and High Treatment Costs for People with Disabilities

Share

Summary:

• Justus Buhisya, a Senior Occupational Therapist from Kabale Regional Referral Hospital, addressed the guests, including local authorities, stating that the government had deployed only 11 specialists to serve 1.7 million PWDs in South Western Uganda as of May 2024.

---

KABALE: Health service providers in Kabale District have expressed concerns about the shortage of medical experts for People Living with Disabilities (PWDs), the high cost of treatment, and the lack of sufficient centers to repair mobility aids.

These issues were highlighted during the commissioning of the Shs. 3 billion donor-funded Rehabilitation Centre, Cherished and Redeemed Ministries, in Rwamukundi Cell, Kirigime Ward, Southern Division, Kabale Municipality. The center’s mission is to provide free physiotherapy, orthopedic services, and occupational therapy to children with physical and mental disabilities.

Richard Namara, Project Manager at Cherished and Redeemed Ministries, noted that the prevalence rate of multiple disabilities in the Kigezi sub-region is 13%, the highest compared to the 4-6% in other sub-regions of Western Uganda.

Justus Buhisya, a Senior Occupational Therapist from Kabale Regional Referral Hospital, addressed the guests, including local authorities, stating that the government had deployed only 11 specialists to serve 1.7 million PWDs in South Western Uganda as of May 2024.

He emphasized the severe shortage by pointing out that the region has only one Orthopedic Technologist without a functioning workshop for repairing mobility aids such as wheelchairs, scooters, walkers, canes, crutches, prosthetic devices, and orthotic devices. Buhisya urged local leaders to advocate for increased budgets to improve access to health services for PWDs at all government levels.

CUE IN BUHISYA…..ON SPECIALISTS…..ENG//

Naboth Muhumuza, an Orthopedic Technologist at Cherished and Redeemed Ministries, highlighted the high costs associated with diagnosing and treating children with mental disabilities. He mentioned that a CT scan or MRI to examine a child’s brain damage costs Shs. 350,000 and Shs. 750,000, respectively, while consultations with a pediatric specialist range from Shs. 100,000 to Shs. 200,000. Muhumuza added that medications for children with cerebral palsy are also expensive, with each Sodium Valproate tablet, used to control seizures caused by epilepsy or bipolar disorder, costing between Shs. 3,000 and 8,000. Treatment durations can last from six months to two years.

CUE IN MUHUMUZA…..ON COSTS……ENG//

Girnet Cornelia, the founder of Cherished and Redeemed Ministries and an occupational therapist, explained that her motivation to establish the Rehabilitation Centre in Kabale Municipality came from visiting the homes of children with disabilities in Kigezi about three years ago, at the invitation of James King Bagyenzi, a local filmmaker and Executive Director of REEL Impact Films. Cornelia had been providing charity services to the Batwa Community since 2015, and during her visit, she encountered many children with untreated multiple illnesses. With support from donors in Michigan, USA, she was able to realize the project.

CUE IN CORNELIA….ON PROJECT……ENG//

Counsel Naturinda Eliab Mporera, the Project Legal Consultant, praised the local authorities in Kabale Municipality for their cooperation in establishing the rehabilitation center. He urged the political leadership of Kabale District to lobby for more funding for such projects, noting the increasing number of people needing these services.

CUE IN MPORERA….ON LOBBYING……ENG//

The project currently supports 160 children with disabilities from 69 families across the Kigezi Sub-region. Services provided include covering costs for diagnosis, treatment, and routine therapy, supplying mobility aids, and offering economic support to the children’s caregivers.