Health and Social Services
Dr Emmanuel Kanjunjunju : Director of Health and Social Services
Directorate of Health & Social Services
SECTIONS
FAMILY HEALTH SERVICES SECTION
Person responsible for the section: Mrs N Mangunde
A CORE BUSINESS
- To provide maternal and child health care services
- To provide family health services
- To provide outpatient clinic to members of staff
- To provide VCT for both staff and the general public.
- To provide ART services for both staff and the general public.
- To prepare child health days that is done twice a year.
B TYPE OF SERVICES
MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH SERVICES
These services are routine and are done daily from Mondays to Fridays. For maternity services, it is done daily for 24 hours.
We have two maternity clinics and these are:
Bangwe Maternity Clinic located after Nthandizi stage.
South Lunzu Maternity Clinic located in area 3 in Machinjiri
At South Lunzu Clinic, post natal clinics are done on Wednesdays. Check-ups for newly born babies before two weeks and are given BCG vaccine to prevent them from TB and D POLIO starter for polio vaccine.
STATIC AND MOBILE CLINICS
We have 9 static clinics and 7 mobile clinics and these are:
Static clinics:
1 Bangwe Clinic 2 South Lunzu Clinic
3 Makhetha Clinic 4 Chirimba Clinic
5 Chigumula Clinic 6 Ndirande Clinic
7 Limbe Health Centre 8 Chilomoni Health Centre
9 Zingwangwa Health Centre
Mobile Clinics:
1 Ntenje Clinic 2 Mapanga Clinic
3 Misesa Clinic 4 Mzedi Clinic
5 Manyowe Clinic 6 Masala Clinic
7 Nancholi Clinic
At Limbe, Chilomoni and Zingwangwa Health Centres, mentioned above, City Council staff only do under five services.
Mobile Clinics:
Ntenje Clinic: Service is done only twice in a month i.e. first Monday and last Monday of each month. The services provided are as follows:
- Underfive services
- Post-natal services
- Ante- natal services
- Pre-test and post- test counseling
- HIV testing and ART services (PMTCT)
- Family Planning Services.
Mapanga Clinic: Service is done twice in a month thus alternative Wednesdays and the services provided are the same as those of Ntenje Clinic.
(c) Misesa Clinic: Service is done twice in a month alternative
Wednesdays and services provided are under five and family planning only.
(d) Mzedi Clinic: service is done on first Thursdays and last Thursdays of every month. Services provided are under five and family planning services.
(e) Manyowe Clinic: Service is done very Tuesdays and services are post natal check-ups, under five services, ate-natal services, family planning services, pre-test and post-test counseling and HIV testing and ART services (PMTCT)
(f) Masala Clinic: Service is done very Thursdays and the services provided are:
- Post natal check ups
- Under five services
- Ante-natal services
- Family planning services
- Pre-test and post-test counseling
- HIV testing and ART services (PMTCT)
(g) Nancholi Clinic: Services are done every Fridays and services provided are:
- Post natal check ups
- Under five services
- Ante-natal services
- Family planning services
- Pre-test and post-test counseling
- HIV testing and ART services (PMTCT)
Static Clinics:
Chirimba Clinic: The clinic is open on daily basis and do provide the following services:
- Post natal check ups
- Under five services
- Ante-natal services
- Family planning services
- Pre-test and post-test counseling
- HIV testing and ART services(PMTCT)
Makhetha Clinic: The clinic is open on daily basis and do provide the following services:
- Post natal check ups
- Under five services
- Ante-natal services
- Family planning services
- Pre-test and post-test counseling
- HIV testing and ART services (PMTCT)
Chigumula Clinic: The clinic is open on daily basis and do provide the following services:
- Post natal check ups
- Under five services
- Ante-natal services
- Family planning services
- Pre-test and post-test counseling
- HIV testing and ART services (PMTCT)
OUT PATIENTS FOR BLANTYRE CITY STAFF
This is done on daily basis but timely because the nurse doing the outpatient service is the one who also go out to mobile clinics.
VCT CLINIC
This is done on daily basis for both staff and the general public
ART CLINIC
This service is only done on Thursdays for both staff and the general public.
HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES HIV AND AIDS
Coordination officer: CAROL KASSAM
CORE BUSINESS
To Coordinate various HIV and AIDS programs in response to the epidemic in the City of Blantyre under the following pillars:
Prevention and behavior change
Treatment, Care and Support
Impact mitigation
Program management and coordination
Prevention and Behaviour change under this pillar we provide the following services and activities with the aim of preventing new infections and reducing the spread of the virus by encouraging charge of behavior for those that are already HIV positive as well as those who engage in risky behavior:
i Condom distribution
Together with the various stakeholders implementing HIV and AIDS activities we provide access to both free and socially Marketed/branded male and female condoms.
ii Distribution of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) Materials
To enhance prevention and behavior change we distribute I E C materials such as Posters, leaflets, brochures, pamphlets, magazines etc for people to have access to HIV/AIDS information.
iii HIV Mobilization Meetings
We conduct HIV mobilization Meetings together with our stakeholders in different communities with the aim of mobilizing a lot of people to pass on the message to fight the epidemic. The HIV Mobilisaton meetings includes HTC meetings, PMTCT Meetings, ST1 meetings ART and Treatment, Dialogue sessions, candlelight sessions, community school level talks, world Aids sessions, awareness campaign meetings etc.
iv Life Skills Education
We also provide life skills education to both in school and out of school youths.
vi Youth Friendly Health Services
We provide access to youth friendly health services where the youths can access sexual reproductive, health services.
vii HTC
We also provide HIV testing and counseling services for the residents of the City to know their status.
TREATMENT CARE AND SUPPORT
Under these Pillars we conduct the following activities and provide the following services:
i ART (ANTI-RETROVIRAL TREATMENT)
We have an ART Clinic which is open for the residents of the city to come and access anti-retroviral treatment. The clinic is conducted every Thursdays and admits HIV start treatment according to the WHO Staging.
ii Nutrition, Care and Support Treatment (NCST)
Under the ART Clinic we also run an NCST program for treatment and management of HIV+ clients with severe and moderate malnutrition. This program is run with support from Dream Health Centre where we get our Nutritional food supplements.
iii Community Home Based Care Visits (CHBC)
Together with the community based organizations volunteers, we conduct CHBC visits to people living with HIV/AIDS to provide support as well as encourage adherence to drugs. These visits are made by the Volunteers as well as Health Workers.
iv Supports to chronically ill households
We also provide the following support to chronically ill households together with various stakeholders; Nutritional support, Financial Support, Material Support, Medical Drugs, Psycho-Social Support etc.
IMPACT MITIGATION
Under this pillar we provide the following services with the aim of reducing the impacts of HIV and AIDS.
Education support to orphans and other vulnerable children.
Currently we are supporting 215 orphans and OVCs in 21 different government schools in the City of Blantyre.
4 PROGRAM MANAGEMENT AND COORDINATION
Under this pillar we strengthen the capacity of organizations for example CBO’s, FBO’s, Local NGO’s etc as well as individuals to plan, implement, and coordinate HIV and AIDS programs/activities.
We also build partnerships with various other organizations implementing such programs as well as advocate and mobilize resources for HIV/AIDs activities.
WASTE MANAGEMENT SERVICES SECTION
Person responsible for the section: Mr P Nyasulu
A CORE BUSINESS
To provide street cleansing.
To provide market cleansing.
To provide latrine disludging and emptying both private and public.
To provide refuse collection and disposal.
To manage of Mzedi Dumpsite at Kachere.
B TYPES OF SERVICES
STREET CLEANSING
This is a routine daily street cleansing that is carried out in all the major streets in Limbe and Blantyre Central Business Districts (CBDs). We also carry our cleaning campaigns in other roads entering the CBDs such as the Kapeni road,Kenyatta Drive road, CI- Chikwawa road just to mention a few. We are on the move to extend such campaigns to other roads such as Tsiranana road from Maselema round about to Kachere market, Chileka road from Kameza round about to Old Kandodo Corner Shop, Makata road from Chichiri round about to HHI robots, Nyambadwe –Magalasi road among others that are in bad shape at the moment in as far as solid waste management is concerned.
MARKET CLEANSING
Market cleansing is also done on daily basis in all the designated Blantyre City markets. However, the Department periodically supplement such routine activities with market cleansing campaigns as was done with Kachere Market on 20th June 2015, Limbe Produce Market on 21st June 2015, and Blantyre Produce Market on 9th August 2015 among others. We wish to extend such campaigns to other City markets as well.
LATRINE DISLUDGING AND EMPTYING
Latrine disludging and emptying is being done and of late, market latrines from Chirimba, Mbayani, Thawale, Zione, and Nkolokoti
Markets among others have been disludged and emptied. The activity is still underway and every calls on disludging and emptying are well responded both from the public latrines/toilets and private septic tanks/latrines that is chargeable.
REFUSE COLLECTION AND DISPOSAL
The Department carries out routine refuse collection and disposal from residential areas and Limbe and Blantyre CBDs. Refuse collection and disposal in every settlement or location is allocated special days in a week as follows:
Mondays : Mandala/Sunnyside, Ginnery Corner Industrial area and Chigumula/Mpingwe.
Tuesdays : Namiwawa, Chitawira and Ndirande.
Wednesdays: Nyambadwe, Kanjedza/Chinyonga
Thursdays : Naperi/Soche East/Zingwangwa/Manase,
Fridays : Nkolokosa/Manja/Njamba/Kwacha and BCA/Chiwembe
Saturdays : Chileka and Mudi/Mapanga
And on daily basis refuse collection and disposal is being carried out in Limbe and Blantyre CBDs.
Further to that, the Department also carries out skip collection prior to waste overflowing from markets that are scattered all over the City. Daily skip collection is done at Blantyre Market, Limbe Market, Blantyre Flea Market and Chirimba Market. A good example would be Chirimba Market, Blantyre Flea Market and Blantyre Produce Market- there is little waste for collection at the moment compared to the past few months. The Department also collects skips from companies at a fee.
MANAGEMENT OF MZEDI DUMSITE
The section also makes sure that the dumpsite is well managed by way of seeing to it that refuse is disposed accordingly as per the setup of the dumpsite.
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
Person responsible for the section: Mrs A Nkhonjera
A CORE BUSINESS
To carry out business and residential premises inspections.
To carry out disease control exercises.
To carry out environmental health services
To ensure good sanitation and hygiene.
B TYPES OF SERVICES
BUSINESS AND PREMISES INSPECTIONS
Business and residential premises are always supposed to be inspected. For residential the following are checked:
Availability of a latrine
Availability of a bathroom, kitchen, refuse pit, for proper waste disposal in peri- urban areas and for a bin in urban areas.
Availability of hand washing facilities.
Information on water supplies for example: use of taps, unprotected well, use of chlorinated water.
For business premises inspection, we make sure that they have business licence, there is availability of running water, toilet and cleanliness of the building and rubbish bins.
In food premises, we check medical reports of food handlers, that are putting on clean uniforms, head gears always, the cleanliness of the areas, availability of sanitary facilities e.g toilets, bathrooms, refuse bins.
DISEASE CONTROL
There are Health Surveillance Assistants in the City who notify us on disease outbreaks such as cholera and we do follow it up and come up with preventive measures. We have wash clusters in the City and have a fortnight meetings to strategise on disease prevention.
One percent stock of chlorine is distributed during rainy seasons to households in low density areas. Health Surveillance Assistants carry out health education talks in ante-natal clinics, markets and communities on proper waste disposal and disease prevention. Health Surveillance Assistants also do vaccination of under-five and pregnant women during Ante-natal clinics.
PEST CONTROL
We have a team that carries out pest control activities like bee destruction, wasps destruction, termites destruction and bed burgs destruction.
People pay for the service and it is also done as a free service to people in the City e.g larvaciding in streams.
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
We ensure that people consume food that is good. So whatever that is hazardous and expired from food premises is disposed of at our Mzedi dumpsite. To avoid that it does not go back to the people, Police escort and petrol is used to burn the goods.
SANITATION
To ensure good sanitation and hygiene in our markets and schools, we work hand in hand with implementing partners. The health surveillance help in monitoring of behaviour change activities
In markets, we make sure that they have bins to dispose off their garbage before throwing them in skips and that they use the toilets well and keep them clean.
CEMETERY SECTION:
Person responsible for the section: Mr Noel C Gulu Banda.
A CORE BUSINESS:
To provide funeral and burial services on hire to the general public e.g.
Grave digging and hearse services.
To answer calls from QECH or Police for removal of unclaimed bodies.
To maintain and keep clean all cemeteries under our direct control.
B CLASSES OF CEMETERIES:
There are two classes of cemeteries under our control and these are:
Class One or A– Limbe Class One on Thyolo Road
Blantyre Class One at HHI.
The services in the two cemeteries are offered by our office and are as matter of courses are chargeable.
Class Two or B – These are: Chitawira, Bangwe, Malabada,
Chilobwe, Zingwangwa and Naperi.
C OTHER SERVICES OFFERED:
Exhumation of remains where a need arises for various reasons
D RESERVATION OF GRAVES
Spaces in class one cemeteries (Blantyre Class One and Limbe Class One)
E OPERATIONAL OFFICE:
Based in City Engineering Yard at Ginnery Corner.
F OPERATION HOURS:
It is a 24 hour service and open every day including week ends and public holidays.