Announcing Kristina Health Center (KHC) Phase II construction

Announcing Kristina Health Center (KHC) Phase II construction to expand our treatment capacity.

Construction of an 18 bed patient ward began in early April 2013 via a staff of 19 workers, two supervisors and an architect – all Ugandan. Un-skilled workers come from Awake where Kristina Health Center is located; skilled workers reside in Lira, 42 miles away, but live on the health center site during construction.

With the exception of a truck delivering construction materials, the ward is built 100% by hand – no gas or electric powered machinery. The workers began by digging the foundation.

KHC treats an average of 500 patients every month, many of them traveling several kilometers by foot or bicycle. The severity of their conditions and the distances they travel often require them to remain at KHC overnight, perhaps before being transferred to Lira Regional Hospital. Today, these patients typically spend nights in converted clinic rooms, the KHC lobby or even local villagers’ huts.Upon completion of the KHC 18 bed medical ward, patients can spend their nights in relative comfort while also increasing the overall treatment capacity of the clinic. We will also hire additional staff to manage this expanded scope of service.

Once the ward is finished, KHC Phase II will also include construction of a second living quarters to accommodate our growing staff of permanent and volunteer medical personnel. Staff who might otherwise commute two hours each way from Lira will now have a place to live on campus, and will thus be able to treat patients even more efficiently, while volunteers providing care in specialized medical areas and dentistry will have dedicated living quarters while in Awake.