Week in Health

Last week, Heart Team, a US-based humanitarian non-governmental organization announced plans to open a cardiovascular treatment facility in Rwanda. Dr Joseph Mucumbitsi, a pediatric cardiologist said the facility will be located at Kicukiro District Hospital, in Masaka. This development followed a memorandum of understanding reached between the NGO and the Ministry of Health last year. Mucumbitsi explained that the team had been providing support for especially the youth with heart diseases on humanitarian basis but now committed to building a cardiac excellence centre that will treat cardiovascular, rheumatic heart diseases and other lifestyle diseases. Meanwhile, fund-raising drives are ongoing for the $10 million project whose construction is expected to start in 2017 and treatment anticipated to kickoff between 2018 and 2019. In other developments, while opening the fourth conference of the East Africa Healthcare Federation (EAHF), last week, Prime Minister Anastase Murekezi called for implementation of national healthcare programmes. Murekezi was urging the private sector, in partnership with governments, health based organisations, development partners, to play a critical role in the implementation of programmes such as quality clinical services, health insurance schemes, health infrastructure, equipment among other services. Antoinette Habinshuti, the managing director of Partners in Health/ Inshuti mubuzima (IMB), in Rwanda, also emphasized that more services and new engagement await needy patients. Briefing journalists in Kigali on the 10th anniversary focus, Habinshuti pointed out that during the last 10 years, PIH has been working with the Government of Rwanda to ease access to services for vulnerable individuals through supporting adequate staffing, prioritizing rural access to care and infrastructure development and supplementing public supply chains, among others, to ensure quality and ease access to healthcare services by vulnerable individuals. In efforts to beef up the health sector, a comprehensive audit of the community health insurance scheme, Mutuelle de Santé, is yet to be concluded and availed to the public later this month to indicate the real situation of the fund’s management, Finance and Economic Planning minister Claver Gatete told The New Times in an interview. The minister explained that the government has embarked on a comprehensive audit of the community health insurance scheme to get a real picture of its management. The aim of the auditing came as part of the lead up to handing over the scheme’s management to the Rwanda Social Security Board (RSSB), an institution that is expected to re-organise Mutuelle de Santé and improve its services to the majority of Rwandans. One district after another, the auditors have so far audited Mutuelle de Santé schemes in 20 districts and Amb. Gatete added that the remaining 10 districts will have been audited by end of the month. According to Gatete, the comprehensive information about Mutuelle de Santé will iron out reports of mismanagement of the scheme’s funds and reveal the entire truth which will be the basis for punishing those who misused the scheme. Compiled by Solomon Asaba