By Mary Poni
Malaria had proven as the most threatening disease in South Sudan especially in Juba according to health officials.
The Juba Teaching Hospital Medical Director Dr. Maker Isaac Wel said that though they keep on receiving cases everyday including referrals from various hospitals and clinics, there are no specialists to attend.
Dr. Maker Isaac Wel told The No.1 Citizen Daily Newspaper in an exclusive interview that the highest registered disease in the country since the year began till august is malaria based on the statistic records in Juba Teaching Hospital.
According to the medical director, the outpatients department registered 94 males and 89 female and they admitted 17 males and 22 females while the inpatients deaths were 5 males and 3 females for the month of august.
He said that the hospital has not confirmed the actual statistics for the month of September because the doctors responsible are still working on it.
He said the Juba Teaching hospital have all the required doctors and most of the equipment facilitating the hospital adding that people should not hesitate to seek public hospitals for better treatment.
According to Dr. Maker, the biggest problem facing the doctors in their performance is the delay of salary payment, citing that if one is not paid, it becomes a problem for the personnel or doctors to go for work every day.
He said the medicines are supplied by non-governmental organization (Health Pooled Fund South Sudan) not by the government of South Sudan.
“Though the NGOs do support the hospital, they are not providing everything especially supply of the medicines, there are other types missing but that still don’t lower the performances of the hospital in service delivery,” he said.
The medical director however assured that they are working hard to provide good healthcare services to people of South Sudan though with the conditions that are available.
“If Health Pooled Fund stop supporting the hospital, we will go back to the government because it is supposed to be the responsibility of the government to do the provision of medical facilities and other necessities to the hospital” he noted.
The Juba Teaching Hospital medical director reiterated that the government is supposed to have a budget for the hospital to run it but because of the situation the country is in, it makes it impossible for the government to sponsor, be it a worthy salary, provision of high standard medical facilities, medication among others.
“We are struggling though trying to co-share to getting little money from the patients which is not what we want but we are being pushed by situation to charge them little amount,” he said.
He added that sometimes they treat others for free and giving other patients transport because they cannot afford.
“The situation of this country is not ideal but we are working to improve it since we have the best doctors in the country,” the medical director underscored.
The ultrasound is broken but very soon it will be in its position to function, the current available machine functioning is the CT-Scan which is the best in the country where most of the people come for, the blood bank and also the best laboratory.