RICO set up field hospitals in the past at two different wards in Kehancha including Kugitimo Dispensary and the Kwiriba Rescue Center. Services offered include general consultation, eye clinic, dental laboratory and pharmacy. A total of 683 patients were served during the most recent medical camp. The field hospital held at the dispensary aimed at improving the services offered by providing more resources and promoting data collection on the epidemiology of the area.
EARLIER YEARS
On May 31st to June 3rd, 2018, RICO dispatched its medical team to Kuria East Sub County. One of the remote wards in the sub-county had been adversely hit by floods in the period March-May and there was a proposal to have a field hospital at Gokeharaka Shopping Centre with a mobile team reaching out to the flood-hit area. Geographically, Kuria East is one of the 8 sub-counties in Migori County with the others being Suna East, Suna West, Nyatike, Uriri, Rongo, Kuria West, and Awendo. The poverty index stands at 0.496 in the rural areas. Most people depend on small-scale agricultural cultivation and livestock rearing to take care of their daily needs. Tobacco cultivation and use are also rampant in the area.
Thanks to our host, Dr. Mahiri, the planning was seamless and less of a burden on the team. Massive mobilization was done on the ground with the help of local officials including the chief, area Member of County Assembly, Member of Parliament and the County Government of Migori. There was good coordination with the organizing committee at RICO ensuring everything went as planned.
The camp ran over two days. The main station was at Gokeharaka Shopping Centre and a mobile team was dispatched each day to Siabai Makonge Area where floods had been reported early on in the year. Over the two days, a total of 683 patients were seen. Females made up the majority at 437 (63.98%) while males were 246 representing 36.02%.
Worth noting is that the majority of the patients were youth aged 13-39 years while under-5’s represented only 7.76% of patients seen. The contraceptive uptake rate in the area can subjectively be classified as good. Overall, the disease prevalence followed a predictable pattern as there were no major departures from existing data on disease profile on the county save for a few remarkable facts. Gastrointestinal conditions ranked first as the biggest cause of morbidity among patients seen. Respiratory conditions ranked second and a new entrant, dermatological conditions ran a close third position to close the top three list. Urinary tract infections are, however, still a cause of concern among women of reproductive age.
From 21st March 2019 to 23rd March 2019, RICO set up field hospitals at Gitayama and Nyamethaburo wards. During this time, 626 patients were seen. At this time, about 1000 residents of Migori County have been displaced from their homes by raging floods following the heavy rains pounding the area. Most of them benefited from the services provided during the field hospital.
During the years, there were a few challenges experienced including difficulties in accessing the site due to the poor state of the so-called ‘access roads’ complicated by heavy rains. The team was however always been up to the task
