Medical oxygen is essential to deliver safe surgical care and treat several critical conditions, including pneumonia, a leading cause of deaths in children. Yet, in 2016, less than half of the hospitals and health centres across Ethiopia had medical oxygen. Medical oxygen scarcity is a common problem across subSaharan Africa: 25 percent of health facilities failed to have oxygen and 32 percent have an irregular supply.
As part of the effort to equip numerous hospitals with state-ofthe-art equipment, the government has recently inaugurated Oxygen medical centre in Amhara State to curb oxygen shortage frequently observed at hospitals. Located in Bahir Dar town, the Centre will provide affordable and reliable oxygen to hospitals across the Amhara State, bringing the lifesaving medical treatment within reach of millions of patients.
It is a milestone of both the Safe Surgery 2020 Initiative, which strengthens surgical systems in Ethiopia, and the Ethiopian government’s Medical Oxygen and Pulse Oximetry Scale up Road Map. Ayenalem has been working in the factory which operates 12 hours per day, with a possibility of extending it 24 hours in the future, for three months. “As I worked in the medical institutions, I knew the problem very well”, he said adding that the factory would address medical problems, mainly shortage of oxygen in hospitals.
“The Oxygen Centre is an exciting example of the power of public-private partnerships (PPP) to strengthen the health sector,” said Dr. Amir Aman, Minister of Health. “We have seen how partnerships are essential to improving the quality of patient care and overcoming infrastructure challenges.” GE Foundation’s Executive Director, Dr. David Barash on his part said “The commissioning of the Amhara state Oxygen Centre has culminated through the concerted efforts of several organizations over the past three years. It is a huge achievement, both in terms of the impact it will make and an instance of solidarity among numerous partners.”
The Ethiopian government is committed to expanding access to oxygen for women and children through the Medical Oxygen and Pulse Oximetry Scale Up Road Map, in association with the United for Oxygen initiative. The launch of the Amhara Region Oxygen Centre serves as a demonstration model for scaling up oxygen production nationwide.
“Medical oxygen is needed by several patients. Our medical practitioners should distinguish which patients need oxygen more and which do not,” said Dr. Abebaw Gebeyehu, Head of Amhara Health Bureau. “The Amhara state Oxygen Centre is critical to ending the scarcity of medical oxygen in the region. Eventually, we hope this model will be scaled up across Ethiopia.”
The Centre is a pioneering model for oxygen production and distribution developed by Assist International, a US-based NGO. The model has been proven in Rwanda and Kenya with remarkable results. The Centre was founded through investments by the GE Foundation, Grand Challenges Canada, the Amhara Health Bureau, and Felege Hiwot and Dessie Referral Hospitals. “In many instances, innovation must go beyond a medical product or device in order to truly have an impact,” said Karlee Silver, Co-CEO of Grand Challenges Canada.
“Executing on an innovative business model with a strong collaborating government partnership provides an important footing for sustainable impact at scale.” As part of the Centre, two oxygen production plants have been constructed at Felege Hiwot and Dessie Referral Hospitals. They will be managed through an innovative public-private partnership business model that creates a locally-run and revenue generating system.
The Centre will also provide necessary training to hospitals to ensure medical oxygen is used effectively for patient care. The Centre is a flagship program of Safe Surgery 2020, which brings together innovations, global expertise, and local experience to make surgery safe and accessible for all.
Seed funded by the GE Foundation, the Safe Surgery 2020 initiative launched in Ethiopia since 2016 and has contributed to the development and implementation of Ethiopia’s national strategy for surgery: Saving Lives Through Surgery (SaLTS). The partnership has implemented a range of workforce development and infrastructure programs, including producing 60 surgical leaders, mentors and providing training for over 500 hospital staff on sterilization and surgical infection prevention across Ethiopia.
The Ethiopian Herald April 25/2019
BY GIRMACHEW GASHAW
