The Okongo District Hospital in Ohangwena Region is still without an operating theatre, which Health Director John Hango says remains a major obstacle to the adequate provision of health care systems in the region.

The non-availability of a theatre at the hospital has resulted in staff making use of the casualty or any other rooms available to conduct minor operations.

More serious cases, like caesarean sections, are referred to Onandjokwe Intermediate Hospital, which is 200 kilometres away.

The construction of a N$59 million maternity ward at Onandjokwe Intermediate Hospital is nearing completion.

The Onandjokwe maternity ward will be the largest ward among all public health facilities, with a bed capacity of 120.

Currently, the ward has a bed capacity of 70.

It will have its own two theatres, a high-care unit for babies and mothers, as well as an emergency department.

According to Dr. Saad Rwehumbiza, the acting medical superintendent at Onandjokwe Intermediate Hospital, the hospital delivers more than 7,500 babies annually.

Onandjokwe Intermediate Hospital has upgraded its infrastructure and equipment, thanks to the government, its development partner in health.

Onandjokwe Intermediate Hospital is one of the oldest hospitals, founded by Finnish missionary and medical doctor Selma Rainio in 1908.

Most of its buildings are constructed with mud, and 90% of them need total renovation.

The hospital was under the management of the Evangelical Lutheran Church until 2015, after which it was handed over to the government and upgraded to an intermediate hospital.

The Minister of Health and Social Services, Dr Kalumbi Shangula today inaugurated the Heads of Departments' offices at the Onandjokwe Intermediate Hospital. The offices were sponsored by the Pupkewitz Foundation to the tune of N$ 2.7 million.

Linked to the main hospital, the HoDs will ensure improved administrative professionalism and data storage on departmental statistics to better serve better train health professionals and the wider community. The hospital is one of the oldest in the country and caters to thousands of patients in the northern regions.