Bulawayo faces nurse shortage

BULAWAYO City Council (BCC) is considering approaching Government with a request to employ more nurses as Health Services Department is operating on a shortfall of 134 nurses, a situation that has hampered health delivery in the city.

The local authority is operating with 38 percent of nursing positions being vacant, with the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing having last year ordered council to freeze any new recruitment, arguing that the local authority was already overstaffed.

The situation is dire at the BCC-run infectious diseases hospital, Thorngrove, where, out of a required complement of 19 nurses only eight are employed.

This is despite council recently declaring that the hospital was prepared to handle any possible Ebola outbreak.

The city's Mayor, Councillor Martin Moyo, said the health service department was very critical to the city as it was responsible for the well-being of residents.

"It is something we have been aware of for some time. We really have a critical shortage in our clinics where we end up having a case of overburdening our employed nurses, which ends up hindering service delivery.

"The issue is rather tricky because we also have to consider our financial wellbeing for us to be in a position to employ and fill the vacancies in the department and as for sentiments that we are already overstaffed, in such a scenario we would have to approach the relevant authorities but this is strictly determined by availability of resources," said Clr Moyo.

Questioned on whether this shortfall could affect the council in the scenario of disease outbreak, the mayor noted that they made sure that they deployed nurses in such a manner that they still could run the clinics.

Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Minister Dr Ignatius Chombo said while he understood the importance of the health sector and the need for the local authority to put in place an efficient health services department, it was important that they manage their staff establishment so that they maintain their required salaries to service delivery ratio.

"What I said concerning that issue is not a freeze per se but these local authorities should at least be able to manage their staff recruitment in such a way that the salaries paid out do not overburden them.

"So in such a scenario I fully agree that there is need to have a viable health services department but at the same time they should be in a position to manage their entire establishment so that they do not become overburdened," said Dr Chombo.

According to a BCC confidential report, under normal circumstances, the Health Services Department should operate with an establishment of 353 nurses but it has 219 in its books.

Khami Road Clinic has four out of the required 11 nurses, Mzilikazi has 10 out of 15, Njube, eight out of 15; Pelandaba, 27 out of 33; Pumula, eight out of 16; Tshabalala, six out of 15; EF Watson, five out of 12; Magwegwe, nine out of 16; Luveve, 22 out of 23 and Nkulumane, 31 out of 37.

Emakhandeni clinic has 10 out of the required 16, Northern suburbs, 20 out of 32; Entumbane, eight out of 15, Nketa 12 out of 16; Princess Margaret Rose, six out of nine; Dr Sherman, four out of six; Maqhawe, seven out of 15; Pumula South, six out of 15 and Cowdray Park is the only clinic with its required figure of seven nurses.

Some of the other critical shortages in the health department also include a dentist, a chief nursing officer, pharmacy technicians, dental assistant and a state certified medical laboratory technician.

"The director of health services (Dr Zanele Hwalima) reported that the department was experiencing an acute staff shortage at all clinics and Thorngrove Hospital, this results in the burnout of staff leading to a compromise of standards in the health service delivery, patients were dissatisfied with the very long waiting periods," reads the report.