(ERGO) – Farhiyo Ali Yusuf, a displaced pastoralist, was relieved to be able to deliver her third baby comfortably in the new hospital in the remote Beli-we’atay village in northern Somalia’s Bari region.
The positive experience reminded her of the pain she had to endure travelling 60 kilometres to the nearest health facility in the town of Armo when she delivered her previous two babies.
“It’s a shame when a pregnant mother doesn’t have access to maternity services. Now we have a health centre here with beds and medicines,” she said.
The hospital was established by the charity, Lions Clubs of Somalia, and opened in June, potentially serving some 10,000 drought-displaced impoverished families like Farhiyo’s.
Farhiyo, who was displaced from Jacayl village near Beli-We’atay after her family lost their 300 goats to drought, runs a small cafeteria she opened in May with a $300 investment loan from a local businessman. Her husband helps her at work and they make around $4 a day.
She is glad she can now access free treatment locally for her children, instead of being forced by lack of money to watch them suffer as happened in the past.
“They had diarrhoea and vomiting and I kept them in the house for four days. Their situation was getting worse. Transport costs would have cost at least $500 and the hospital admission and expenses are separate. But today we thank God we have a health centre near us,” she said.
Duniyo Abdullahi Atosh took two of her children have been sick with watery diarrhoea for two weeks. She told Radio Ergo her children had recovered after getting medical attention. The doctors informed her they were probably infected by contaminated drinking water.
Duniyo and her family of 10 people live in Tulo-Harago, 35 kilometres from Beli-we’atay. When her children fell sick, she carried them as fast as possible to the new hospital she had heard about from friends. They were unconscious when they finally arrived.
“I got them to the hospital when they were dehydrated and had to be put on drips. Thank God I brought them back home healthy. They were in hospital for a week. We are no longer stressed or worried,” she said. Her children were also given nutritional supplements to help them recover quickly.
her family depend on 80 goats that survived the drought, she said there is fodder shortage meaning they are thin and cannot meet the market standards. She holds on to them hoping they will get rain and fodder soon. They sold the healthiest two goats in July to buy rice and flour but this food is running out.
Dr Asho Arus Mohamed, one of two doctors at the hospital, said nearly 200 patients had visited them in the first two weeks of opening. The hospital offers all services except surgery.
Patients came with different diseases and conditions, including children with acute watery diarrhoea and malnutrition, as well as animal bites. The majority, however, needed maternity and child delivery services.
“The hospital has nine rooms, including the nutrition ward, pharmacy, mother and child ward and inpatient services. This a variety of medicines that the patients need,” she said.
Dr Asho said patients needing surgery are referred to hospitals in Bosaso, Bali-dhihin, and Armo districts.
The construction of this hospital took two years and there are currently two doctors and three nurses working in it. Puntland’s ministry of health supports the hospital’s running costs.
The ministry told Radio Ergo that every year people died of various diseases and women died in maternity related complications in eastern districts of Bari region, although they did not share any numbers on such deaths.
