Kisiizi hospital

Picture of Kisiizi hospitalKisiizi hospital is a 200 bed hospital run by the Church of Uganda. It is situated in a remote area in SW Uganda, an hour's drive away from the nearest tarmac road. Although there are no large towns in the immediate vicinity, (the nearest is Kabale, about 90 minutes drive away) the area is densely populated.

The inhabitants are mostly subsistence farmers with smallholdings where they grow food for their families. Nearly everyone is desperately poor by UK standards. Houses are basic mud huts with earthen floors. There is no glass in the windows. Roofs are made of corrugated iron or banana thatch. Water has to be collected from a river or stand pipe and carried back to the homes, as there is no running water.Picture of roofs of Kisiizi hospital

By contrast, the facilities in the hospital seem luxurious, with electricity and running tap water. There is a beautiful waterfall beside the hospital, which is the reason for the hospital's situation. Water from the falls runs through a generator which provides the hospital with a source of hydroelectric power.

The hospital has an outpatient department, surgical ward and operating theatre suite, a maternity department, a children's ward, and medical and isolation wards. The wards are often full to overflowing, with patients on mattresses on the floor if there is nowhere else to put them. No-one is turned away. There is a resident general surgeon and other groups of specialist surgeons visit from time to time. Picture of inside Kisiizi hospital

Please click here for the official Kisiizi hospital site.