30 Cancer patients die every few days at UTH
30 Cancer patients die every few days at UTH
Reports from the Cancer Diseases Hospital indicate the facility at UTH recorded one of the highest morbidity rate when it lost 30 patients in a space of 3 days last week.
Earlier Government had announced the closure of the facility and stated that it planned to be sending patients to India and Tanzania.
A visit at the hospital found patients admitted and the children section was also open with no major treatment taking place as all equipment is broken down.
This costly programs has failed as only a few patients could benefit as Ministry of Health has accumulated debt and failed to grant full medical access and treatment abroad to cancer patients.
Cancer is now one of the major contributor to morbidity and mortality in Zambia.
To refurbish the Cancer Diseases Hospital, government announced in Novemver 2023 that the facility will be completely closed down for about four to six months and that all cancer patients will be referred to Tanzania at its cost. Preliminary estimates are that each patient will need about $4,500 for their air ticket, meals, accommodation and treatment.
Health Minister Sylvia Masebo “Regarding the issue of patients at the Cancer Diseases Hospital, I’m glad to inform the House that the government, through the Ministry of Health and in particular the Cancer Diseases Hospital has engaged the Tanzanian government through the Cancer Centre in Tanzania as we prepare for the complete replacement of the equipment. To this effect, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the cancer disease centre of Zambia and that of Tanzania where it has been agreed that at the point where we start the replacement of the old machine, the hospital will have to be closed for a period of four to six months. It is at this period when the hospital will be closed that the machines will be removed and the infrastructure will have to be rehabilitated, taking into account the new machines that will replace the old machines. Once the machines are brought in and the hospital becomes operational, that is the time the patients will be removed from Tanzania back into our hospital.
The cost of referring patients to Tanzania as I indicated is a matter that is being negotiated and there is an MoU. An MoU simply means we have agreed but we have not finalised. What comes out of an MoU is an actual contract that will give you now that real figures. Now, that is a procurement matter but off the cuff, I can state that the amount will be around $4,500 per patient and this will cover the cost of transportation to Tanzania, the cost of accommodation for the patient, meals and for a six to seven weeks costs of radiotherapy. So, that will cost around $4,500. But as I indicated, the finality will come out of a signed contract”.