The First Lady and Minister of Education, Janet Kataha Museveni, emphasized the need to motivate health workers to provide excellent maternal and newborn care during a tour of a health facility in Kampala. Represented by Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng, the Minister of Health, Maama Janet highlighted the importance of engagement, training, and improvements in support supervision and logistics to enhance the quality of maternal and newborn care.
The First Lady stressed that motivated health workers can contribute to finding local solutions for sustainable medical facilities. She underscored the significance of an integrated continuum of care, from pre-pregnancy through childhood, across all levels of service delivery. Addressing health system bottlenecks, improving coordination, strengthening infrastructure, and ensuring an adequate number of trained and motivated health workers are crucial steps in enhancing healthcare.
Maama Janet also called for public education on the importance of growing and consuming nutrient-rich food to combat malnutrition, which can lead to stunted growth and even death in children. The guided tour included a visit to the Intensive Care Unit for premature babies at Mulago Specialised Women and Neonatal Hospital. Delegates observed the care provided to premature babies, including the Kangaroo-style method, where mothers hold their premature infants against their chest for better growth and protection.
The tour also showcased the hospital’s specialized services, including antenatal care, benign gynecology, urogynaecology, physiotherapy, cervical cancer screening, immunization, and Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART), including In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) services. Dr. Evelyn Christine Nabunya, the Executive Director of the hospital, provided insights into the range of services offered.
Present at the guided tour were spouses of African heads of state and government officials attending the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Kampala.
