Saving Cameroonians from Ill Health

The Cameroon government says that the uncontrolled number of health clinics and training institutions are responsible for the death and worsening medical conditions of many here. Credit: Monde Kingsley Nfor/IPSBy Monde Kingsley NforYAOUNDE, Jan 23 2014 (IPS) The Cameroonian government has begun a crackdown on illegal medical facilities and plans to shut down more than 524 medical training centres and 600 private clinics operating unlawfully in this Central African nation.  “We are starting activities to bring order to the medical sector that has gone out of control. Most of [the illegal medical institutions] lack the training, appropriate staff, equipment and infrastructure to operate either as a medical training institution or a clinic,” Biwole Sida, the national health inspector in the Ministry of Public Health, told IPS. “The uncontrolled number of clinics and training institutions are responsible for the death and worsening medical conditions of many innocent Cameroonians,” Sida added. In the student residential area of Bonamusadi, in Cameroon’s capital, Yaounde, IPS visited one such clinic that is open 24 hours a day and which provides a wide array of medical services, including prenatal and paediatric care. But a patient who was rushed to this private clinic with burn wounds was turned away and taken to the nearby government hospital, Yaounde Central Hospital, as the clinic has stopped admitting emergency patients. “We now operate only by appointment since ...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: Global & Universal Authors: Tags: Africa Bitter Pill: Obstacles to Affordable Medicine Development & Aid Editors' Choice Featured Headlines Health Human Rights Poverty & MDGs Projects Regional Categories TerraViva United Nations Cameroon Hospitals Medical Stand Source Type: news