“One Of The Views Of The Hospital Is Operational Research”

Dr, can you give us an overview of the Bamenda Regional Hospital?

Being now for close to three months as the new Director of the Bamenda Regional Hospital, the hospital is a State hospital for the North West Region and it is a referral hospital created in 1956. The main mission of this hospital is first to provide quality health care to the population and secondly to provide pedagogic support to training institutions in the region. The hospital offers training to schools such as Faculty of Medicine in the University of Bamenda, laboratory schools and nursing institutions. The doctors working here are also teachers of the University of Bamenda. So the hospital serves as a practical ground. One of the views of the hospital is operational research. The students come to the Bamenda Regional Hospital to see the reality, face the patients and to see the various pathologies they have studied in school; we have a reference laboratory for tuberculosis because in the health care sector we talk of community participation. Other partners come for research for HIV/AIDS, since we collaborate with the community. We also meet with community representatives to discuss projects, business plans that the hospital has to carry.

What is the capacity composition of the hospital?

We have in total as at 2019, 12,780 admissions, 400 hospital beds with a staff capacity for close to 500 out of whom 41 are doctors. In this hospital we have one internal Medicine, a Neurologist in charge of nerve problems, an ophthalmologist in charge of eye related issues and three gynaecologists. This is a whole team, besides laboratory technicians, nurses, nutritionists, hygiene and sanitation staff, midwives and mental health related specialists. In 2019 we consulted and admitted 12,780 patients, 12712 number of deliveries and 870 caesarian section were conducted. 630 major surgeries and 3326 minor surgeries as a result of road accidents, etc. 70 babies died, 77 mothers died in this hospital for various reasons. Most of the times we receive referrals from all over as far as Douala, Widikum, Ndop, etc. We equally carry out blood transfusion. We don’t fabricate blood. Blood is donated by Cameroonians. We are telling the public that when we donate blood, we save a life, so we are calling on the public to come to the blood bank of the Bamenda Regional Hospital and donate blood bearing in mind that they are saving lives.

What are the measures taken to curb death?

The measures to curb death first of all are early consultation. The hospital is open 24/24 so the staff is always on duty. When you come at any time you will meet them.

Sensitization of the public is another measure. When you are sick stop moving from one quack to another. This will avoid auto medication. Patients prefer staying at home until when the problem aggravates they then come to the hospital.

We have created a waiting room for expectant mothers especially those who are really far away from the health facility. If you know you are to put to birth on the 20th for example, you are expected in the hospital on the 16th, so that when it is the 20th, you just walk into the labour room  and deliver the baby safely. This labour room is free. No payment is done.

What is the hospital doing to improve on the lives of the population?

To improve on the lives of the population, many projects have been carried out by the state. Some of which includes the day care center inaugurated on the 23rd of February 2004 by H.E. Olangena  Awuno, in the 2020, the government has gone a long way to eliminate some HIV services that were paid such as HIV test that was FCFA 500 is now for free. Antenatal clinic for HIV mothers are equally free, the Imagery center for diagnosis, the City Scan that was also inaugurated on the 21st of April 2015 by H.E. Andre Mama Fouda. Another big investment is the dialysis centre which has close to 60 clients that come every time for haemodialisis consultation.

Projects carried out by my predecessor include toilet projects that you have the community assisting to the realization of these projects; pavement of the hospital, planting of flowers around the hospital has not been left out. This makes the hospital conducive for the patients and the population to come and sit and enjoy the environment.