By Nelson Gonjani:
For residents of Sub- Traditional Authority (STA) Tundulu in Kasungu District, accessing healthcare services can be a long, exhausting and distressing experience.
With Kasungu District Hospital located some 15 kilometres (km) away, seeking medical attention remains a challenge for a community that has waited 12 years to see its own health facility opening its doors to them.
Chikukula Health Centre, constructed in 2014, stands as a reminder of the community’s long wait for accessible healthcare.
Although the building has been completed, it remains non-operational because essential supporting infrastructure— including staff houses, toilets, a source of reliable water supply and incinerator for medical waste disposal—is still missing.
For residents, the absence of these facilities means that a health centre that was intended to bring relief closer to home has yet to fulfil its purpose, leaving families to continue covering long distances whenever they need medical attention.
One of the residents, Merece Mvula, said the situation was particularly worrying for women seeking maternal healthcare services, as the distance makes accessing antenatal care an additional burden.
Mvula said she experienced these difficulties firsthand when she was pregnant and struggling to raise money for transport to attend antenatal appointments at Kasungu District Hospital, the nearest available health facility.
“I had to find money for transport to attend antenatal appointments at Kasungu District Hospital because it is the only nearby health facility. When I had no money, I had to do piecework to raise the transport fare, which was not easy for me as an expectant mother,” she said.
Her experience reflects the difficulties faced by other pregnant women in the area, many of whom must find ways to meet transport costs before accessing essential maternal healthcare services.
Mvula raised the concern when Kasungu Central Constituency Member of Parliament Chikondi Kampachike Chisale, accompanied by district health officials, visited the facility.
“We are required to cover about 15 kilometres from here to Kasungu District Hospital to access healthcare services, which should not be the case. Women are among the most vulnerable, particularly when seeking maternal healthcare services,” she said.
Mvula explained that the community had hoped that the construction of Chikukula Health Centre would ease the burden of covering long distances to seek treatment.
However, despite the completed building, residents continue to face the same difficulties they had hoped the facility would resolve.
Mvula said the 12-year wait had left the community wondering how much longer it would take before the health centre could begin serving its intended purpose.
“This facility was constructed in 2014 and this year marks about 12 years since its construction, yet it is still not functional. This is negatively affecting our communities.
“At times, we fail to address medical conditions that require urgent attention because of the distance we have to cover. The time has come for us to unite and find a lasting solution to this challenge,” she said.
challenge can be addressed
However, opening the facility requires more than a completed building. Essential supporting infrastructure must be put in place to provide a suitable working environment for healthcare workers and ensure the safe delivery of health services.
Kasungu District Director of Health and Social Services Emmanuel Golombe said the absence of essential facilities, including staff houses, toilets, a reliable source of water supply and incinerator, remained a major obstacle to opening the health centre.
He also cited lack of coordination between community members and district health officials as one of the factors contributing to the situation.
Golombe said the district health office was committed to ensuring that residents access healthcare services closer to their homes.
“We are very committed to ensuring that people access healthcare services, but we cannot operate the facility without these essential structures.
“We believe that, through the Member of Parliament, this challenge can be addressed using Constituency Development Fund (CDF) resources,” he said.
Meanwhile, Chisale has pledged to help address the outstanding requirements.
“I will make sure that this facility becomes operational through CDF resources. Where necessary, I will also use my personal resources to address the situation,” he said.
Once operational, Chikukula Health Centre is expected to serve more than 1,000 households in the area, bringing essential healthcare services closer to residents who have endured years of waiting.