Parly committee members cause stir in Chinhoyi

MEMBERS of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care caused a stir in Chinhoyi on Monday after they arrived two hours late for a public hearing on the Public Health Bill.

Attendees were further incensed that in addition to arriving two hours late at Cooksey Hall, the parliamentarians failed to provide the public with copies of the Bill.

Further, acting chairperson of the committee Senator David Chimhini, who said they were delayed at a similar meeting in Magunje, failed to satisfactorily explain what the Bill was all about.

During the meeting, representatives of the Zimbabwe Nurses Association (ZNA) indicated that the Advisory Board on Public Health was overstaffed, which makes it not only costly, but inefficient as well.

ZNA Mashonaland West provincial chairperson Mr Kudakwashe Kokanai added that inadequate resources were militating against the right to health.

“The Public Health Board is bloated and this has got cost implications.

“While there is also no limit to public health officers, the Bill just says as many,” he said.

Public health administration, he said, should not be a monopoly of certain health professionals, as proposed in the Public Health Bill.

“Every health professional is involved in public health from primary, secondary, tertiary prevention of public health threats, but the Bill singles out medical practitioners as the custodians of public health,” he said.

Meanwhile, in Magunje, villagers said they were being discriminated at since, in addition to contributing labour and materials when constructing clinics, they were also asked to pay for services.

Mr July Changwe said villagers in rural areas were not enjoying the same status as their urban counterparts.

“We build the clinics and on top of that, we are asked to pay for the health services,” he said.

“I have never seen this happening in towns and this indeed is gross discrimination.”

Ward 18 councillor Mr Ben Chipanda said health for the rural people was not guaranteed by the Bill since huge payments were demanded when villagers were referred to big hospitals in towns.

“The health of our rural people must be guaranteed through mechanisms that exonerate them from payment of fees,” he said.

“Imagine a poor old man who visits a clinic is referred to a hospital, where payment is demanded upfront.

“There should be some mechanism in place to make sure social welfare comes in to assist. We also want Government to address the issue of ambulances.

“Let there be ambulances at every strategic point like rural district council offices, where villagers can easily access their services rather than calling for such services from towns.”

Government workers complained that the Bill only recognised medical practitioners as qualified to head public health institutions.

In an interview, Senator Chimhini expressed satisfaction with the feedback they were getting.

“The consultations in general are showing that there are still gaps at the grassroots level, which must be addressed,” he said.

“These consultations are not for a medical Bill, but a public health document that covers all aspects of heath, which include sanitation and toilets issues.”

The new Public Health Bill is expected to improve conditions of the health sector and quality of life for Zimbabweans.

Zimbabwe is using a 90-year-old Public Health Act, which is not in tandem with changes in the health sector.