No more foreign referrals - Canisius
POLITICAL referrals abroad must now cease as the country is now able to conduct complex operations such as the separation of the conjoined twins, former UPND vice president for politics, Doctor Canisius Banda has charged.
And Dr Banda bemoaned the low confidence in health practitioners and facilities among the general citizenry.
He reiterated that if ever there was a success story to be told about independence in Zambia, the healthcare story was one such case.
Dr Banda said that former President Kenneth Kaunda and his team should be saluted for their hard work and foresight in transforming the health system.
He pointed out that during colonial days, hospitals were segregated and healthcare for the natives, the blacks, was rudimentary and poor
“Under very challenging circumstances, devoid of much education, but armed only with love and passion for their country, they changed Zambia forever and for the better. It is therefore surprising that confidence in our own health practitioners and facilities remains low among the citizens,” said Dr Banda.
Dr Banda said that Zambia today had all the healthcare personnel any country would need, both skilled and competent.
He claimed that some of the nurses and doctors that Zambia has today are better than those found in the United States of America and the United Kingdom.
Dr Banda said that Zambia was now relatively self-reliant in health care and that political referrals abroad should now cease.
“It is therefore not surprising that Zambians, black ones at that, the once-called natives, are now masters of 'alien' arts and are able to conduct complex operations such the separation of pagalbabies, also called conjoined twins.
“Not many countries in the SADC region, even in Africa and the world at large, have done this,” said Dr Banda.
Dr Banda charged that political referrals abroad should also now cease as the country was now able to conduct complex operations such as the separation of the conjoined twins witnessed on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Dr Banda said that it was pleasing that President Lungu had continued to build upon the work of those that went before him by further investing in healthcare.
He pointed out that the President has done well with regards to human resource, equipment provision, availability of medical and surgical supplies, and infrastructure development.