Kampala hospital investment needed to reduce outbound medical travel

According to SoftPower News, Ugandan doctors are debating the benefits of investing scarce government money into improving two major hospitals rather than just one. The government’s plan is to establish a private international specialised hospital in Lubowa in southern Kampala, which some see as diverting funds away from existing renovations at Mulago National Referral Hospital.

The Head of Mulago hospital is quoted in the article in favour of the investment in Lubowa, arguing the case for more competition. He stresses the rapidly growing Ugandan population needs access to more hospitals. If these hospitals offer international-standard healthcare, he suggests, then international patients from the DRC and South Sudan could be persuaded to travel to Uganda for medical treatment. He also said that more hospitals will reduce the number of Ugandans travelling abroad for treatment.