By George Emuron
BUKEDEA
Residents of Kabarwa Sub County in Bukedea district have been forced to re-adopt the use of local herbs as a remedy for treating diseases such as Malaria, headache and typhoid among others as Kabarwa health center III rots without a single drug.
Kabarwa health center III is one of the health facilities serving three sub counties of Kabarwa, Malera and Kangole.
In an interview with the facility in charge who asked this publication not to publicize his names, the facility has taken two quarters without receiving any drug.
He said the medical workers only conduct patient checkup and prescribe for referral in private clinics.
“We do not have any single drug in the facility, so what we do is testing and those who require immediate attention we send them to private clinics to buy drugs,” said Health in charge.
The facility in charge also added that only pregnancy tests and a few of the malaria test kits are the government kits available in the facility.
Mr. Ben Angura, the Kabarwa Sub county chairperson on Thursday 9th, Feb 2023 said lack of drugs in the health facility is the big challenge the sub county is experiencing.
“This sub county is one of the biggest sub counties in terms of population, so you find that the patients are referred to the private clinics and those who can afford to go to the clinics and those who fail go back home with their sicknesses,” said Mr. Angura.
Mr. Angura added that in such a situation, the majority resort to hunting for herbal trees for treating some curable diseases.
“I am appealing to the government to come and intervene in this situation, people lack what to eat, schools are demanding money but at the same time there are no drugs in the health facility,” added Mr. Angura.
Bogas Emokol, one of the senior citizens, said the common person is suffering in the communities.
He said majority of people are now forced to sell the little harvest they got in order to buy Coartem in the private clinics.
Mr. Paul Ogwang, the Bukedea assistant district health officer on Friday 10th, Feb 2023 told this publication that the issue is general.
Mr. Ogwang said all the health facilities in the entire district have not received drugs.
“This outcry cuts across the entire district and we have yet to get a communication from the ministry of health,” said Mr. Ogwang.
