We need a hospital for children

Earlier this week, someone said that “If you have never been to Katutura, you know nothing about life”. Well, I say you have not lived until you have been to Katutura Hospital.
Majority of Namibians especially those who can not afford the services of private doctors make use of Katutura Hospital and it is no secret that it is not in the best of conditions and I do not even want to talk about the attitudes of some doctors or nurses.
With the recent commencement of construction of the Madam Pohamba Private Hospital, it hit me that Government should really look into constructing a hospital for children. By a hospital for children, I mean a hospital that can give healthcare services to children from Havana as well as those from Klein Kuppe.
As a mother, who also goes to Katutura Hospital for healthcare assistance, it scares the hell out of me to see that in most instances patients with different illness besides maybe TB, cancer and HIV/AIDS are put in one room which makes it easy for patients to pick other sickness in Hospital.
Recently my 1 month old god-daughter was admitted into hospital for mild diarrhoea. By day three, she had picked other infections from the hospital which resulted in her fighting for her life in the ICU. This little girl is just one of probably many others who pick other sicknesses at the hospital.
Imagine thinking that your daughter is getting better, only to find out the next day that she is actually being treated for some additional infection and no one can tell you how and where she contracted that infection. It would definitely frustrate any parent.
I am sure that top officials at the Ministry of Health and Social Services as well as Minister Kamwi do not even go to Government Hospitals for treatment and their children get treated by private doctors at private hospitals when ever they get sick.
Those people get the best treatment in the country whenever they get sick, the question remains why should the people who voted them into power suffer and be last in line when it comes to receiving quality healthcare.
According to statistics there is a decline in Reproductive Health spending and maternal and child mortality rates are increasing, especially among poor, remote, and uneducated populations.
The country’s Reproductive Health Roadmap, estimated to cost N$6.4 billion (US$717.2 million) over five years (2009–2014), calls for steep increases in Reproductive Health spending, from N$633 million (US$70.5 million) in 2010 to N$908 million (US$101.1 million) in 2014.
While Namibia spends more than half of its health expenditure on education on health care, I still think that most of the money used for education on health care should be invested in constructing a children’s hospital for the poor Namibians, so that our children do not die at Katutura Hospital from diseases and infections picked from other patients.
I therefore plead to the government to look into building a special hospital for children to serve the less privileged Namibians and give them proper healthcare services.