Africa-Press – Namibia. EENHANA State Hospital’s maternity and paediatric wards are neglected as some patients say they are treated by student nurses without the supervision of qualified medical staff.
Sophia Itembu (32) says she was admitted to the hospital on 1 March to deliver her third child, and found the conditions to be unbearable.
“The wards are dirty. There is often no running water in the showers for new mothers to clean themselves, and most toilets are broken,” she says.
Helivi Theofilus, another patient, says: “We are treated by student nurses, without the supervision of experienced medical staff. This is putting our lives at risk.”
Another patient, Helaria Haufiku, claims she had to answer unecessary questions before being admitted for the delivery of her fourth child.
“The nurse on duty asked me a lot of questions that were so humiliating and made me feel uncomfortable. The nurse on duty . . . asked about the number of children I have and I told her. Then she proceeded to ask who I was giving birth for, as these are a lot of children.
“She further asked me if I have not heard of contraceptives. I felt humiliated and angry.
When contacted for comment, the director of health in the Ohangwena region, John Hango, refuted allegations of student nurses working without supervision.
“These things are difficult to verify, but I can tell you that since March 2023 the maternity ward has had 12 qualified nursing staff, nine registered nurses, and three enrolled nurses. These are nurses who have undergone four and three years of training, respectively.
“We have 12 people running the maternity ward during the day, and these nurses are supervising 20 student nurses.
“Nurses who are learning in the wards are never left without supervision unless they are assisting with washing patients, mouth care and feeding patients, making beds and turning patients.
“Things like giving oral medication and injections cannot be done by student nurses – unless they are in the final or fourth year of their course,” he says.
Hango says qualified medical staff are often overwhelmed as they are outnumbered by student nurses.
“Student nurses are way too many. Qualified nurses are tasked with looking after these students, as well as looking after patients.
“During the evenings we have four registered nurses and two enrolled nurses, with 14 student nurses, and the practice is the same at the paediatric ward.
“These are critical wards for the hospital . . . we choose people we know are really suitable to work in those wards,” he says.
“I vehemently refute these allegations. Given the number of qualified staff, sometimes student staff will visit the wards alone to conduct their given duties,” he says.
Hango acknowledges that several toilets at the hospital are out of order, but says there is always water so that patients can clean themselves.
“Efforts have been made to purchase materials to fix the toilets, including a purchase order, but when we went to buy the items, we found they were out of stock. So we are waiting for the new budget so that we can continue,” he says.
Hango acknowledged that there is a need to intensify supervision to ensure the hospital and all wards are properly cleaned.
For More News And Analysis About Namibia Follow Africa-Press
