Yesterday we visited the district hospital at Ilula. This has quite a story. It started as a small Dispensary. Through the work of the Ilula Health Task Force of SPAS, especially two dedicated doctors stateside, it has become the district hospital. (I think they understand they would be nowhere without the support of the other members of the task force, however.) They have 60 beds, usually full, and an outpatient clinic as well. They do about one C-section a day for 60,000TSH (about $54USD). They had to transfer patients to Iringa, about 45 minutes away by vehicle, so many women died of ruptured uterus. Since they have had capacity to do the C-sections at Ilula, no women have died of ruptured uterus.
They have a TB ward - all of the TB patients have HIV. They have an HIV Clinic originally established through the Clinton Foundation. The King Foundation is building the nursing school which should be ready by 2010. There is excellent progress on the buildings. (The KF supplies buildings, but not staffing or ongoing expenses, so that will be from an alternative source, such as the government.)
As far as we have come, there is a way to go. We saw the laundry. They hand wash the sheets in two big concrete tubs. They need a washer. However, getting electricity is not as simple as tapping the line at the nearest building and will require a more expensive project (don’t know how much).
Ilula competes with government hospitals too. We lose good personnel to higher salaries and housing on campus. There is room for staff housing, but it needs to be built. Highly educated people can command amenities elsewhere. The dedicated stay out of love for their community, so a potent strategy is to higher from within. In other words, scholarships tied to contracts, essentially what we do in many instances in the states.
They have a TB ward - all of the TB patients have HIV. They have an HIV Clinic originally established through the Clinton Foundation. The King Foundation is building the nursing school which should be ready by 2010. There is excellent progress on the buildings. (The KF supplies buildings, but not staffing or ongoing expenses, so that will be from an alternative source, such as the government.)
As far as we have come, there is a way to go. We saw the laundry. They hand wash the sheets in two big concrete tubs. They need a washer. However, getting electricity is not as simple as tapping the line at the nearest building and will require a more expensive project (don’t know how much).
Ilula competes with government hospitals too. We lose good personnel to higher salaries and housing on campus. There is room for staff housing, but it needs to be built. Highly educated people can command amenities elsewhere. The dedicated stay out of love for their community, so a potent strategy is to higher from within. In other words, scholarships tied to contracts, essentially what we do in many instances in the states.
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