Kuda Pembere
African Distillers Limited (AFDIS) on Friday donated blankets, curtains, curtain rails, buckets, and a water tank to Sally Mugabe Central Hospital’s B8 Ward, a male ward which the company adopted for maintenance and refurbishment in 2019.
The donation, valued at US$20,000, also included essential electrical and plumbing works.
Speaking to HealthTimes after the handover, Sally Mugabe Central Hospital Chief Medical Officer Dr Hopewell Mungani said the donation had significantly improved the ambience of the ward, which he noted plays a critical role in patient recovery.
“So they (AFDIS) adopted this ward, it’s Ward B8, it’s a medical ward. They adopted the ward in 2019 and they’ve been making renovations throughout, the latest being last year when they completed the renovations of curtaining, ablution facilities, painting and electrical refurbishments,” he said.
“So we are quite grateful for AFDIS’ work and as you can see the ward looks immaculate and it has got an ambience within it. As a result, the observation of privacy amongst the patients and the ambience also helps both the staff and the patients.”
Dr Mungani said the intervention came at a critical time, as the hospital had been facing water supply challenges.
“We had had a bit of a challenge with water supply but they’ve also provided us with a tank that can help as a reservoir when the water supply is low,” he said.
He added that earlier in the year, AFDIS had also provided fruit hampers for staff and patients.
“Today, they also brought in some fruit hampers for the staff and the patients. I’m sure the patients will be grateful for this gesture,” Dr Mungani said.
AFDIS Managing Director Mrs Muchaneta Ndachena said the improvements had enhanced both the working environment for nurses and the healing environment for patients.
“So, we are here at Sally Mugabe Hospital handing over our donation, which includes blankets, curtains, curtain rails, buckets and a water tank. We also refurbished the ablutions for Ward B8, which is a male ward here at Sally Mugabe Hospital,” she said.
“As part of our corporate social responsibility, we adopted Ward B8 in 2019 and renovated it. Now and again, we come and check to see whether everything is okay. Where there are gaps, we come and fill them up.”
“But this year, we have done improvements worth US$20,000 to ensure that we keep this ward up to date. We want to make the patients feel comfortable and also make it more pleasant for the staff who work here.”
Mrs Ndachena said AFDIS would continue supporting the hospital in line with government efforts to improve healthcare infrastructure.
“So, we’ll continue as AFDIS to support Sally Mugabe Hospital and this also supports the government initiative to work on hospital facilities to provide healthcare to all in the country. This is the part we are playing as AFDIS,” she said.
Meanwhile, Dr Mungani said the hospital’s water challenges had largely been contained, with ongoing work to improve reticulation.
“As you have seen today as we went around, there was water. We’ve managed to rehabilitate our pump house and the challenges are now minimal,” he said.
“We previously had low pressure because of pump house issues, but now we can generate enough pressure for water to reach up to the third floor, which is the last floor of the hospital. We may still face challenges with reticulation here and there, but we are making efforts to improve it.”
