Chinhoyi Hospital starts keyhole surgery
CHINHOYI Provincial Hospital (CPH) has started offering laparoscopic or keyhole surgery, a modern surgical technique that allows surgeons to perform operations without opening up a patient.
Small holes of between 0,5 to 1,5 are used to insert instruments for minimum interference with the body to ensure quick healing and less pain on the operated patient.
This makes Chinhoyi Provincial Hospital the first such hospital in the country to offer the surgery, which until recently was only being offered at central hospitals.
CPH medical superintendent Dr Collet Mawire said the development was part of the hospital’s drive to continuously improve services.
“We have recently started offering laparoscopic surgery to our patients,” he said. “I would want to say we are the first provincial hospital to offer services using that technique. Surgeons use telescopic equipment through finger size holes to access internal body organs that need to be operated on.”
With the technique, said Dr Mawire, there were not many complications which normally occur with the traditional open surgery.
The technique is used to access the abdomen and pelvis for operations such as appendix removal, which will take up to two weeks to heal, compared to up to 10 weeks after the traditional procedure.
The procedure shortens the time a patient is admitted in hospital and lessens the pain they endure, with less scarring as less tissue is affected. This is part of the hospital’s thrust to undertake major surgical procedures through partnerships with organisations such as the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA), Lifeline Dolomite and Women and Health Alliance (WAHA).
The hospital has been designated a centre of excellence for Fistula repair surgery and provides cardiology services for heart ailments and VIAC services for cancer screening and treatment.
It opened its doors to the public in 1996, offering basic curative services and surgical procedures, but has since grown to offer major operations.
In a bid to maintain and expand the improved health services, Dr Mawire said the hospital will roll out periodic client satisfaction surveys.
Government has also chipped in by appointing a six-member board led by pharmacist and businesswoman Ms Matilda Jairos to help in running the hospital.