Makerere University Walter Reed Project renovated a health facility on Koome Island, one of 16 islands located in Lake Victoria.
“If you build it…they will come” isn’t necessarily the case when it means you have to charter a boat for $50 just to obtain health services. In 2013 the Makerere University Walter Reed Project renovated a health facility on Koome Island, one of 16 islands located in Lake Victoria. The fully operational clinic allows residents of Koome to receive HIV care and treatment, which they previously had to travel to mainland Uganda for.
While the clinic on Koome Island has filled a great need for health services for residents, many people on nearby islands are still without healthcare or the means to travel to Koome for services. To address this, MHRP and the Makerere University Walter Reed Project plan to build three satellite clinics on the islands of Kimmi, Ddamba and Kansamewe, all part of the Koome Island chain in Lake Victoria.
“Kimmi Island is the most populated and currently has no health facility,” said Kim Bohince, MHRP strategic program manager. “By building these clinics and training ministry of health staff, we will really be able to scale up health offerings.”
The primary care clinics will provide HIV and STI testing and care as well as immunizations and antenatal care. Currently, staff are in the process of identifying space to renovate and the clinics are slated to be operational by the end of FY15.