Members of Parliament want more funds for Butabika Hospital
By Our reporter
KAMPALA – Members of Parliament have called on the government to plan for comprehensive mental health services delivery in the country. According to the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Forum on Mental Health, Hon. Geoffrey Macho, the mental health sector needs more funds.
“Funds are required to support Butabika Hospital which lacks basic needs like accommodation for patients. In case any supplementary budget is tabled, the hospital should be considered being the only national referral hospital handling mental health,” he said.
Speaking at the opening of the mental health camp at Parliament on Tuesday, 21 May 2023, Macho added, ‘Butabika Hospital was planned for 400 patients but now it has more than 1200 patients who go to the extent of fighting for mattresses.”
Commissioner of Parliament, Hon. Mathias Mpuuga called on the private sector to join the struggle to have a better mental health service delivery just as it is in the case of HIV/AIDS.
“One of the biggest approaches that curtailed HIV/AIDS was mainstreaming it in all sectors and all activities. Now we can attest to a very reduction in the spread of HIV/AIDS. Is it hard to do the same for mental health in all we do? Mpuuga said
Mpuuga also urged the government to respond to the occasional mental health drug stockouts at Butabika National Referral Hospital.
The Assistant Commissioner for Mental Health at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Hafsa Lukwata re-echoed the urgency for Parliament to process the Alcohol Control Bill, noting that substance abuse is the leading cause of mental health illness among the youth.
Some of the Members of Parliament and the public at the event in the Parliament gardens.
Deputy Director, of Butabika Hospital, Dr. Byamah Mutamba also requested for funds to reach out to communities, a strategy he says would reduce patients at the oversubscribed Butabika.
“As a national referral hospital, it is our mandate to take services to primary health care centres and in communities. This way, we would not have many patients at the hospital,” said Dr Mutamba.
