The Directorate of Health and Social Services in the Zambezi Region has highlighted the need to reduce the number of patient referrals to hospitals outside the region.

The regional director said this during a meeting with the Minister for Health and Social Services and senior staff members at Katima Mulilo.

The Minister of Health and Social Services, Dr. Esperance Luvindao, paid a familiarisation visit to the Katima Mulilo state hospital on Sunday, during which a number of issues were raised.

These range from a shortage of ambulance services, staff members, maternity ward space, casualty space, and a shortage of medical equipment to the need to expand clinics with a limited space to accommodate patients in the region.

The regional director, Woita Kapumburu, pointed out the need to expand the hospital to an intermediate one as a way to address the distance patients have to travel to receive urgent and extensive medical care.

Dr. Luvindao shared similar sentiments to cater to patients within the region by addressing the challenges that currently hinder the region's aim to reverse the number of patient referrals as compared to patients who are treated locally.

Despite working with such challenges, the minister praised the staff for being able to operate with limited resources, saying that most of the time, only negative stories are spoken about, dimming the light on the many success stories.

The minister, who is in the region for the commemoration of World Health Day on Monday, toured the hospital facility and engaged patients during her meeting with the Katima Mulilo hospital staff, saying that a number of issues need to be looked into, including the handling of the malaria outbreak in the region and the efforts made to address this health issue as one of the most affected regions.