The Sunday Mail
Gender and Community Editor
THE sights that greet unfamiliar visitors as they approach Karanda Mission Hospital, which is neatly tucked 200 kilometres north of Harare, in Mt Darwin, gives the impression of an active campsite.
Pitched small tents and cooking utensils left to dry in the sun nearby are tell-tale signs of very patient visitors that are there for the long haul.
They are all anxiously waiting for their turn to be served, and they are willing to wait for as long as it takes.
Mrs Fortunate Makahwa is one such temporary resident who has a story to tell.
She had accompanied her daughter and daughter-in-law, who are both due to give birth.
“I came from Shamva and I have been here for two weeks,” she said while fixing a passionate gaze on her two daughters.
“Before Covid-19, it was possible to stay inside the institution, but now they don’t allow us in and we understand that. But I cannot go back to Shamva and then come back again; I would rather wait until they give birth.”
A few metres from Mrs Makahwa sits Ms Michelle Zhuwawo and her sick elderly father, who was hoping to consult an orthopaedic after injuring both his legs when he fell from a bicycle.
Although they had sought help at other medical facilities, they considered the service they got unsatisfactory.
They opted to travel to Karanda.
“We were told that there is no longer a specialist who deals with bones; the available one is hired and comes from Harare,” said Ms Zhuwawo.
“He comes every Friday and if you miss him, then you have to wait for another week. This hospital is one that people referred us to and our hopes had been revived. However, the queue to see the specialist is quite long, so we will try back in Gweru.”
The avalanche of patients at the hospital has been a boon for nearby homeowners.
Some have opened their homes for a fee of between US$3 and US$5 for a room per night.
But for Mrs Francisca Bhasikoro, who had been sleeping in the open for the past three weeks while waiting for her brother to be operated on, renting is not an option.
“After doctors went on strike, we were referred to private hospitals in Harare and we could not afford them,” said Mrs Bhasikoro.
“Our option was Karanda and that is what brought us here. They have a cut-off time of 3pm, so on the first day we had to sleep in the open before he was attended to the following day.
“With a hospital bill of at least US$600, the last thing on our mind is renting a room. As long as our brother receives the needed service, then the rest is secondary.”
Gogo Tatadzei Mupuro, who had been at the hospital for seven days as her husband went through an operation, said she sacrificed to sleep in the open to reduce expenses.
“We came from Chitungwiza seeking help at this hospital, and for me to go back and then return, it is costly,” she said.
“I have been surviving on food I brought from home. It is impossible to buy from here. I am eating twice a day . . . but I am just grateful that as long as my husband gets the desired help, everything else will be sorted.”
Hospital officials could not talk to The Sunday Mail as they were not cleared for interviews. Established in 1961 to meet the needs of mission stations in the Zambezi River valley, Karanda has become a go-to hospital as people seek the much-needed relief for their varying medical needs.
It was established by the Evangelical Church in Zimbabwe but operates under The Evangelical Alliance Mission (Team), an interdenominational church group founded in Scandinavia in 1890, but now spread around the world.
Like many other mission hospitals that charge modest fees, Karanda is often overwhelmed by patients seeking healthcare services.
It is at this institution that 15-year-old twins from Mvurwi, Sharon and Shelter Chirata, who suffered horrific second-degree burns a decade ago, are expecting a miracle.
The twins will receive medical treatment, which includes corrective surgery for one of the twins (Sharon), next month.
While the twins’ father has since passed away, their mother abandoned them soon after the unfortunate incident.
They were, however, recently bailed out by the Alfred Dondo Foundation, a philanthropic arm of Impala Car Rental.
“They have been given November 2 as the date for the operation,” said Tracy Ngoma, Impala Car Rental’s brand manager, who also provided additional support for the family in the form of groceries.
“But we will try to find specialists who can give further assistance because they can treat her (one of the twins) to a certain level.” Guardian and aunt to the twins, Mrs Sheila Marimo, said the teenagers were now hopeful.
“To be honest, these children were given to us soon after their father died. I received and committed to taking care of them even though their father’s relatives have never really shown interest.
“After being notified of the financial support they will receive, the twins said they were elated about the prospects of their life becoming normal again,” she said.
And for the past six decades, Karanda has been an oasis of hope, providing the gold standard of what can only be considered as proper health care.
For many, it is not just a hospital, but a miracle hospital.
Karanda is known for the large number of surgical cases it handles as well as treating HIV and Aids, TB, obstetrics and hydrocephalus.
According to the hospital’s website, it is licensed for 150 beds and performs between 15 and 30 surgeries per day on average, while serving up to 300 outpatients.
On an annual basis, Karanda performs over 4 000 surgical cases and has two full-time surgeons.
It has a physician’s assistant and a general practitioner.
Most often, the staff is complemented by two interns from the University of Zimbabwe and medical volunteers from overseas.
The patient population is drawn from the entire country, including from countries such as neighbouring Mozambique, Zambia and Botswana.
