This project was submitted February 2009 and was approved in May 2009.
The partners have receive a contract/Beschikking from the EVD.
Project Budget 1,5 Million Euros
Subsidy (50%): 750.000 Euros.
The project partners have established their Joint Venture (October 2009).
LATEST NEWS: (2012) unfortunately the Ugandan partners have decided to stop the project on 1/3rd of the way through. One of the reasons being another hospital in Uganda receiving the same equipment for free from a development organisation.
Detailed information (August 5th 2009)
The Project Partners have started with their first Result/Milestone.
| Project number | PSI09/UG/03 |
| Location | Kampala, Uganda |
| Sector | Medical Sector |
| Applicant | Dr Moopen’s Holding FZC, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates |
| Third partner | International Hospital Kampala, Kampala, Uganda |
| Start project | 01 July 2009 |
| End project | 01 July 2011 |
| Total budget | EUR 1,498,400 (50 percent PSI contribution) |
Goal of the project
To establish a commercial cardiology clinic based on catheterisation lab technology for advanced diagnostics and treatment of heart diseases, having a maximum capacity of around 3,000 patients annually.
Summary
The medical sector in Uganda is developing. Next to public healthcare providers, there are several privately owned hospitals and clinics that provide the urgently needed healthcare. Most healthcare centres however, do not go beyond primary and secondary levels. General diagnoses can be executed, but specialized interventions and treatments often cannot be provided in Uganda.
Applicant Dr Moopen’s Holdings FZC from Dubai is the largest private healthcare provider in the United Arab Emirates operating more than sixty healthcare establishments (polyclinics, hospitals and pharmacies) in both UAE and India. They are all characterized by their cost effectiveness at project level, allowing the hospitals to provide low cost healthcare to the public. Dr Moopen’s Holding among others owns the MIMS centre in India, which is renowned for its institute for cardiac sciences.
Local partner International Hospital Kampala (IHK) is a very successful private hospital in Uganda. Established by Dr Ian Clarke, it has grown to become a modern 100 bed hospital offering services ranging from gynaecology and ear, nose & throat to surgery and cardiology.
At the moment, IHK can only offer basic cardiac diagnosis through echoes and stress ECGs. For interventions and treatments however, patients need to travel abroad to Kenya, South Africa or India, which comes at considerable costs. The partners therefore propose to establish Uganda’s first cardiology clinic for advanced diagnostics and intervention by investing in a catheterization lab and specialized training of all medical personnel involved.
The partners will establish a separate venture in a building adjacent to IHK. This project will not only be of help to many cardiac patients, it will also boost the image of the medical sector in Uganda by showing these kind of interventions can be done in Uganda.
Results
- Project inception;
- Construction and installation;
- Knowledge transfer and training of medical staff;
- Pilot production and business development.
CSR aspects
For a healthcare provider, international professional standards are of the utmost importance. During the project a pre-audit for the Quality Assurance System (ISO 9001 and ISO 14001) for provision of medical services will be done.
With regard to staff, IHK is well aware they need to offer their employees competitive salaries, challenging career opportunities and professional training and education programmes, in order to retain them.
Impact
| Long term economic activity | DMH and IHK will continue their joint effort to develop their business in Uganda and expand the capacity for advanced cardiology. Another possibility the partners think of, is to open a branch in Tanzania, or to develop similar plans for other medical fields of expertise like kidney dialyse and kidney transplantation. |
| Employment and working conditions | The project will generate 44 new employment positions. A few of them are low qualified (three cleaners), most of them are medium / high qualified, or even at a specialist level (three people). Two years after the project, this number is expected to grow to 100 employees, of which only four are low qualified. The wages will be compliant with other private hospitals. Good working conditions are part of the Quality Control routine as these highly responsible tasks require well educated, well motivated and fit personnel. |
| Transfer of knowledge | All knowledge regarding this advanced diagnosis and intervention clinic is new to Uganda. Not only will this project lift the level of cardiac knowledge present in Uganda, it will also make it more attractive for Ugandan specialists to choose a certain specialization and stay in Uganda, as this will be the first time cardiac specialists can actually work in a fully fledged cardiac clinic in Uganda. Brain drain is mostly caused by a lack of possibilities in a certain country. By introducing this tertiary level clinic, the partners will do their part in counteracting this brain drain in Uganda. |
| Chain effects | The tertiary medical service will bring more patients to Kampala, leading to medical tourism and increasing services demand in Kampala. This will benefit all service providers that cater for the medical industry in the country. |
| Environment | The impact on the environment will be neutral. As part of the Quality Assurance system, the hospital will maintain appropriate measures with regard to public health, hygiene, medical waste, solid waste, liquid waste, sewage, water usage and energy saving. |
| Position of women | At least 60 percent of all employees will be female. This applies to the whole organisation, from nurse to specialist. |