THE Japanese government has donated an X-ray machine to Mashoko Christian Hospital in Bikita, Masvingo province, with indications that the equipment will benefit over 15 000 people in the district.
The hospital also caters for people from as far as Chiredzi and Nyika, which is about 88km away.
Mashoko Hospital executive director Zindoga Bungu said patients were struggling to obtain the necessary medical attention linked to imaging, leaving them with the burden of extra costs of travelling to as far as Harare for the services.
“Thirty-eight years ago when I first came to this area, it was very difficult to find out if there is a fracture or no fracture,” Bunch said.
“At times, if pneumonia was not severe, you may not even diagnose it as pneumonia.
“But when this machine was brought here, the X-rays are so clear so that you can easily say this is the pathology and you quickly get on to help those people.”
Bungu said there had been marked improvement in their services which made it possible to cater for more patients with efficiency and ease.
“The number of X-rays depends on time. Every three months, we take X-rays upwards of 200 of different types,” he said.
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“Our immediate catchment area is 12 000. Those are the people whom we say can’t go anywhere else. They have to come here. We are a referral centre.”
He thanked Japan for its support for grassroots programmes in the country.
Japanese embassy counsellor Masakati Nakamura said they would continue providing critical support to boost access to health services.
“The Japanese embassy donated this X-ray machine in 2019 through Grassroots Grant project,” Nakamura said.
“We have been supporting the Zimbabwean health sector and we will continue to support the Zimbabwean people for their health and life.”
