MediPark plays big role in the north
The Ongwediva MediPark Private Hospital is bringing medical specialists closer to the people of northern Namibia and meeting the needs of patients that the government cannot meet alone.
This is according to Ongwediva MediPark’s managing director, Dr Tshali Ithete, who shared some of the milestones of the private hospital’s ten-year existence.
Ithete said the MediPark journey to becoming one of the best hospitals in the country was not an easy one.
MediPark was founded on the basis of complementing the government’s efforts by providing services lacking at public health facilities in northern Namibia.
“It did not come easy; it has been ten years of growth. It was difficult at the beginning as we were planning to come up with a successful private facility in the north aimed at complementing the other existing health facilities. How? We tried to find the gaps in these health facilities which we decided to fill,” Ithete said.
“It was then when we saw that the area of specialised health practitioners was one of the areas in which the government lacked, as patients from as far as Okongo had to be transferred to Oshakati and then to Windhoek to see a specialist because there were not enough of them based this side.”
Ithete said with the establishment of MediPark the burden on the government was reduced to some extent.
He said after assessing and analysing the situation they had to find ways to attract specialists to that part of the country, develop property and equip it with laboratories and imaging facilities.
Ithete believes that their first large acquisition, a CT scanner, was one of the hospital’s best investments.
“Patients no longer had to travel from the north to Windhoek as we had an agreement with the government to offer services to state patients and for them to utilise the CT scanner. Through that agreement we managed to assist over 2 000 state patients,” Ithete said.
Regarding cooperation, Ithete said there was no need for a distinction between private and public healthcare in Namibia, as both sectors should work together to address the health problems of the Namibian people.
“Our country is too small to have a segmented system,” he said.
Another milestone for the private hospital was last year’s first successful kidney transplant done in Namibia.
The transplant was performed on 29 March 2016, when 59-year-old Bernard Maswahu received a kidney from his 20-year-old son, Muhinda.
MediPark surgeons, supervised by experts from South Africa, have so far has performed six kidney transplants, the oldest patient being 63 and the youngest 22.
Another milestone was MediPark’s accreditation as a teaching hospital by the Health Professions Council of Namibia (HPCN).
KENYA KAMBOWE
This is according to Ongwediva MediPark’s managing director, Dr Tshali Ithete, who shared some of the milestones of the private hospital’s ten-year existence.
Ithete said the MediPark journey to becoming one of the best hospitals in the country was not an easy one.
MediPark was founded on the basis of complementing the government’s efforts by providing services lacking at public health facilities in northern Namibia.
“It did not come easy; it has been ten years of growth. It was difficult at the beginning as we were planning to come up with a successful private facility in the north aimed at complementing the other existing health facilities. How? We tried to find the gaps in these health facilities which we decided to fill,” Ithete said.
“It was then when we saw that the area of specialised health practitioners was one of the areas in which the government lacked, as patients from as far as Okongo had to be transferred to Oshakati and then to Windhoek to see a specialist because there were not enough of them based this side.”
Ithete said with the establishment of MediPark the burden on the government was reduced to some extent.
He said after assessing and analysing the situation they had to find ways to attract specialists to that part of the country, develop property and equip it with laboratories and imaging facilities.
Ithete believes that their first large acquisition, a CT scanner, was one of the hospital’s best investments.
“Patients no longer had to travel from the north to Windhoek as we had an agreement with the government to offer services to state patients and for them to utilise the CT scanner. Through that agreement we managed to assist over 2 000 state patients,” Ithete said.
Regarding cooperation, Ithete said there was no need for a distinction between private and public healthcare in Namibia, as both sectors should work together to address the health problems of the Namibian people.
“Our country is too small to have a segmented system,” he said.
Another milestone for the private hospital was last year’s first successful kidney transplant done in Namibia.
The transplant was performed on 29 March 2016, when 59-year-old Bernard Maswahu received a kidney from his 20-year-old son, Muhinda.
MediPark surgeons, supervised by experts from South Africa, have so far has performed six kidney transplants, the oldest patient being 63 and the youngest 22.
Another milestone was MediPark’s accreditation as a teaching hospital by the Health Professions Council of Namibia (HPCN).
KENYA KAMBOWE
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