Mobile clinics saving lives in rural areas

The donation of mobile clinics is one of the ways in which medical care can be improved and accessed by residents in Rural Rwanda. Two mobile clinics, each worth over Rwf200million were recently donated by The Korea Foundation for International Healthcare (KOFIR) through the Korean government, to the Rwanda Military Hospital (RMH). For the first time, the mobile clinics (Radiology and Ultra sound clinics) were given a test during a Special Outreach Service conducted by Rwanda Military medics and a Korean NGO- Good Neighbours Rwanda, from November 21 to 25. Residents say that this free medical outreach program was a major boost in health care services in the community and of which most cannot afford under normal circumstances. “It is costly to access medical care and in most cases we spend days seeking for a mere appointment with a medical specialist. This is very expensive and at times one ends up paying a lot and never gets to see a doctor” says one mother, Josephine Niyongwa, who was patiently awaiting a medical checkup for her daughter, Erive Impano. Local leaders say that such programs cut down on costs of residents seeking medical examination and treatment in city centers. Donatha Mukarushema, the assistant director of Gihara health center says that the program ultimately boosts health services provided by most rural health centers, which are in most cases incapacitated with lack of expertise. “We cannot handle most of the cases due to lack of expertise in some medical fields” Mukarushema says “such occasions are helpful because they relieve rural health workers of the workload and most health problems are handled in a short time.” Stunningly most residents were not aware of most of the diseases which would in due time claim the lives, if it was not for the outreach program. Collette Mukantagara, a mother of a child with a heart problem, referred to the outreach as a ‘salvation’. My child has been sickly since birth and I didn’t know that she was suffering from heart complications. I would have eventually lost my baby if it was not for this outreach” she says. A team of Rwanda military medics, lead by Major. Dr. King Kayondo successfully examined and treated over 500 children below the age of 5 years, in Gihara health center. Most of the cases were; dental, intestinal, skin and respiratory diseases- which have affected most of the children in the area. Five cases were diagnosed with severe heart problems and were given immediate transfers to the Military hospital for surgery, due to lack of surgery equipment (operating theater) – which was obviously one of the highly needed equipment for a complete mobile clinic outreach. Apparently, the demand for medical attention was bigger than planned for both children and even adults. Originally the program was meant for children sampled by social workers in Good Neighbors health program, but even grown up residents demanded for similar healthcare and many unlisted parents, who heard of the opportunity, also took chance and brought in their children to the medical camp. Major. Dr Kayondo says that the mobile clinics have been a boost to the army medical outreach services and this will be extended to other rural areas in future. He notes that: “There is need for one more mobile clinic –for surgery, so as to handle some of the cases which needed surgery during the outreach program.” Good Neighbors Rwanda, Managing Director, David Sehyeon Baek says; “The medical outreach service conducted in Gihara was a successful pilot program between RMH and Good Neighbors, thanks to two mobile clinics donated by KOFIH and Hyundai Motors. “It was fortunate that Gihara is not far from Kigali, because we found some surgery-needing cases, which can be transferred to the good hospitals in no time. “We need to think about those remote areas where surgeries may be urgent. In such a situation, it’ll be very helpful to have two more mobile clinics- equipped with an intensive care-unit and an operating theater, where the surgeons can operate immediately.” Durability and capacity The two mobile clinics, made by Hyundai motors, are very expensive indeed and it’s worthy to ask if they are durable and sustainable on the Rwandan terrain. Each mobile clinic has a team of medical specialists, a technician and a generator incase there is no power at the visited site- the mobile clinics will still continue with the usual medical attention without any inconveniences. “There have not been any technical problems so far during the first outreach, and these vehicles are very strong and durable for the African terrain and each of the vehicles has state of the art engines which can do a great job,” says Eric Twishiimire mobile clinic technician. There is no doubt as to why these mobile clinics are expensive and worthy the cause. They are fully equipped with all medical equipment and inside each of the mobile clinics; a patient can get various services, ranging from x-rays, radiography, ultra sound (eco-graph), and complete body examination. The mobile clinics are computerized and also have high-tech equipment such as; an autoclave (sterilizers) an examination lamp, weight measure, fridges and air conditioning which makes both the patient and doctor hygienically safe and comfortable during a medical examination and treatment. 2nd Lt. Dr. Emmanuel Nkurunziza, a radiologist reveals that before an examination, a patient’s database is inserted in a computer inside the mobile clinic and the treatment can be processed depending on the results of the scan. Ends