Patients turn to private doctors as state hospital fails to provide care

Patients in and around Khorixas in the Kunene region are apparently turning to private healthcare providers after repeated failures to receive treatment at the state-run Khorixas District Hospital.



According to sources who spoke to this publication, patients, many of whom travel long distances from rural areas, sometimes wait the entire day without being attended to by hospital staff. In some cases, they are sent home and told to return the following day without receiving any medication or consultation.



“We must travel from far, and nobody really says anything. We wait here all day, and nobody helps us,” said one elderly patient.



Another individual reported having to seek care at a private practice in Khorixas after failing to get assistance from the hospital.

The situation is reportedly linked to a lack of available doctors and clinical staff at the hospital. Complaints about the same issue surfaced last year, when it was reported that recruitment efforts for medical professionals had failed after applicants declined offers to work at the facility.



The newspaper reached out to the Kunene regional health director Thomas Shapumba with a detailed inquiry but received no response by the time of print.



Phone calls also went unanswered. The health ministry's public relations officer indicated no formal complaints had been received and referred all queries back to the regional director.