Indian medics seek closer partnership

A team of 20 Indian volunteer medical specialists who, for the last one week, have been offering free treatment at the Central Teaching Hospital of Kigali (CHUK), hope to maintain partnership with the country.

Saturday, April 28, 2012
Health Minister Dr Agnes Binagwaho (L), together with the Indian Surgeons looking at a patient who underwent an operation at CHK Hospital. The New Times / Timothy Kisambira.

A team of 20 Indian volunteer medical specialists who, for the last one week, have been offering free treatment at the Central Teaching Hospital of Kigali (CHUK), hope to maintain partnership with the country. The treatment and surgeries of over 80 Rwandan patients is part of their activity as Rotarians.While meeting with the Minister of Health, yesterday, Rajendra K.Saboo, the former Rotary International president, said they were going to examine the possibility of continuing the partnership with Rwanda and having some Rwandan Medics go to India for training."Rwandans have been very cooperative and receptive to us, so we hope to continue partnering with them,” he said.He also stated that 15 children with heart defects are going to be taken to India for free heart surgery.The Minister of Health, Dr Agnes Binagwaho, appreciated the volunteers saying they had done a commendable job of providing medical care to the populaton."This collaboration matters a lot, and our doctors have seen and learnt from you. Your mission has benefited our medical personel and I believe they will apply what they have learnt.” Dr Theobald Hategekimana, the Director of CHUK, said the volunteers had helped handle some complicated cases."The volunteers have been of great help as they have helped with some of the medical complications and offered specialized treatment and surgery. We are hopeful that they will come back to help us handle some of the medical complications that we might not be able to handle since some of our doctors are still in training,” Hategekimana said.He added that over 200 patients will have benefited from the team’s medical services by the time they leave next week.The team include orthopaedics, gynaecologists, urologists, ENT, a Plastic surgeon and general surgery among others."There is a waiting list of people requiring surgery at our hospital and the team has helped us to lift the load,” David Hakizimana, a surgeon in Training at CHUK told The New Times.CHUK has only nine professional medical surgeons.