Yei River State hospital is facing a serious power blackout due to fuel scarcity, the state minister has said.
Kogo Manase Levi, the State Health and Environment Minister said the hospital has a challenge of power since the Yei Electric Cooperative (YECO), the public power provider, went down after its operations costs went up.
With the public power provider now off for about two weeks, Kogo feared the hospital is likely to stop operations that require power due to its dwindling fuel supplies for running generators.
“We face enormous challenges within the hospital. The last batch of fuel ended last night,” Kogo told UN and government officials last week. “As I talk to you now, the medical director is in the hospital doing some minor operations only.”
Kogo said lack of power would mean that only minor operations will go ahead while those requiring more power will stop. He said the hospital has been receiving its fuel support from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
Kogo said the state experiences numerous obstacles in the health sector including drug shortages, diminishing health facilities and qualified personnel.
Insecurity resulted in destruction of rural health facilities and fuelled the fleeing of health personnel for safety or for refuge in neighbouring countries.
UN donation a “step ahead”
The UNHCR responded to the state’s main hospital with a donation of assorted surgical equipments for the theatre. The equipment included operating lines, a surgical table and a monitor.
The donation of “advanced equipment will enhance the quality of health services that the hospital is providing,” said Mohammed Tahr, UNHCR’s Field Associate Officer in Yei.
He called for proper utilization and care of the new equipments for better service delivery to the needy people in the state.
“It came at a right time. These are quite advanced equipments for our hospital to have,” Kogo said.
Kogo said the UN’s continued efforts are supplementing government efforts to transform the health sector, to help prevent citizens from seeking services abroad. He called on other development partners and humanitarian agencies to come in and assist the hospital.