By Zainab Joaque
The United States Embassy in Freetown has donated close to US$ 1 million worth of assorted medical equipment to the Joint Medical Unit (JMU) of the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces (RSLAF).
The equipment - in two containers of 20-ft and 40-ft each - was presented to the 34 Military Hospital at Wilberforce on Thursday 17 July by Chargé d’Affaires Kathleen FitzGibbon as part of "Project CURE" which is an initiative of the US Department of Defence's HIV and AIDS prevention programme.
The consignment was collected from hospitals all over the US and packed by private individuals. The supplies include surgical equipment, syringes, needles, hospital gloves, lab coats, wheelchairs, stethoscopes, IVs, hospital and laboratory gowns, beds, mattresses, paediatric cots, respiratory supplies, bed pans and adult and infant diapers.
FitzGibbon said the items would support the existing medical services at the hospital and benefit military personnel and their families.
A team of three from the Project CURE headquarters had visited Freetown in January to conduct an assessment regarding a list that was forwarded to them by the JMU.
The first container of medical supplies arrived in May and the second one came in early last week.
“We are extremely happy with the performance of the troops in Somalia, we hope they will be celebrated when they come home" the Chargé said, adding that they'd got "good report" on the conduct of the troops in Somalia.
She said the positive feedback about the troops had not come as a surprise, adding that it was something the country should be proud of even though it was new to international peacekeeping having not taken part in it for decades.
The US Department of Defence, she went on, had very close ties with African military because “we want to make sure that your troops are the best when they are deployed". She said "if the troops are healthy their families will be too” hence they were supporting the 34 military hospital with the intention of making it filter down to their spouses and families who are also part of the community.
Commanding Officer of the Joint Medical Unit, Col. Dr. Foday Sahr said all the heads of his department were tasked with the responsibility to list down their needs which were compiled culminating in the supplied items.
“The DOD sent a team down here to do an assessment of our needs that just shows how committed they are to the military”.
According to the Commander this is not the first assistance they have been receiving from the US Embassy. “They have been supporting us since 2002, they are the major sponsors of our HIV programme which they helped us establish and are still supporting it with help from DOD” he said.
The lab at Gondama, outside Bo which was restricted for HIV testing, has been transformed into a one-stop-shop lab where personnel can go in and have various tests conducted on them.
The lab, he continued, had been fully equipped with all necessary testing kits by the DOD. “They have also furnished or rehabilitated the lab at 34 with modern equipment and have made it stand out as one of the best in the country; training has been done by them for all cadres of my staff”, Col Foday said.
(C) Politico 22/07/14
