Press Release - BCC and Mpilo Hospital Putting Residents’ Lives at Risk



  
Date:               8 August 2012
Contact:         Emmanuel Ndlovu
                        Programmes and Advocacy Manager
                        Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association (BPRA)



BULAWAYO Progressive Residents Association (BPRA) is concerned that the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) and the Mpilo Hospital Management are putting the lives of residents at risk by failing to work hand in hand to ensure that the hospital has clean running water all the time. This follows reports that Mpilo Hospital closed its operating theatre after going for two days without water following a water pipe burst in the Mzilikazi and Barbourfields area. As a result, patients who were meant to undergo surgery were rescheduled to next week, with charges for continued stay at the hospital also billed on them, something that BPRA sees as unfair to the patients.

BPRA believes that this occurrence is a result of neglect of duty by both BCC and Mpilo Hospital. The association is dismayed that a health institution as big as Mpilo Hospital can go for two days without water with management not taking any measures to solve the problem. The association is equally appalled that a hospital can go for two days without water with BCC not making concerted efforts to correct the problem. BPRA asserts that the argument by the local authority that the fault was not reported on time is neither here nor there as the two institutions, BCC and Mpilo should have entered into a  partnership long ago to ensure that there is always running water at the hospital, and a back-up plan in the event of an emergency. With such an agreement, modalities would have been put in place to ensure that water disruptions at the institution are reported timely and corrective measures taken expediently. Such an agreement would be beneficial to both institutions as Mpilo needs water to function properly while BCC is mandated by the law to provide clean water services in Bulawayo.
I
t is also BPRA’s contention that BCC and other service providers such as the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) should have partnerships or arrangements with critical institutions such as hospitals that cannot function effectively without their services. Such partnerships would be key to ensuring that normal operations at critical institutions are never disrupted as this sometimes means loss of life. As things stand, there is a possibility that a life that could have been saved by surgery will ultimately be lost due to the postponement of the surgery following temporary closure of Mpilo Hospital’s theatre.


Regards
................................................
Mr Emmanuel Ndlovu
Programmes and Advocacy Manager

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