The hospital in Beira comprises some 700 beds, provides acute medical care for 2.5 million people but is staffed by only 50 doctors. A significant number are non- Mozambican on short- term contracts. The number of nursing staff is also very small with wards of 28 beds often with double or triple bed occupancy nursed by only two qualified nurses.
There is a major lack of materials. Consideration should be given to support for the acquisition of items which meet the priorities of Beira staff, have a long life span, and are easy and cheap to maintain and of low revenue cost.
Although in the last three years there has been some new investment in the hospital with new Accident and Emergency, Outpatient and Radiology departments and a suite of operating theatres, the fabric of the hospital is generally poor. In particular the plumbing is in urgent need of replacement. Water supply to many clinical areas, bathrooms and lavatories is very unreliable.
Use of important equipment is limited either by lack of trained staff or by patchy availability of reagents or other consumables.
However standards are improving quite fast. A team of specialists in the hospital have been working with colleagues from Ipswich to develop an ongoing programme of multidiciplinary training in Emergency care and are now providing this on their own.It is now planned to extend this into other specialist areas.
It has also been agreed that the Ipswich Beira Initiative will work with a group of new graduates to provide a programme of mentoring and continuing education for recent graduates especially for those working with little or no supervision in the districts.
