Health workers at Tororo General Hospital have asked Parliament to advocate for the facility’s elevation to a regional referral hospital, citing its infrastructure, equipment, staffing and available space for expansion.
The appeal was made by the hospital’s Senior Nursing Officer, Stella Agembi, during an oversight visit by Parliament’s Committee on Health on Wednesday, 09 September 2026.
Agembi said the hospital was well positioned for the upgrade because it serves an immediate catchment population of about 63,000 people, in addition to patients from five neighbouring districts and Kenya.
“The population we serve comes from most parts of Bukedi sub-region and other districts bringing the catchment area to over one million people. People continuously demand for services we are not able to provide as a general hospital and have to travel a long distance for specialised services,” said Agembi.
She noted that the hospital has adequate land for expansion of over 10 acres, adding that a regional referral status would improve their capacity to offer the services on high demand.
“The regional referral status comes with improvements in the staffing structure, equipment, and even better infrastructure”, Agembi said.
MPs observed that Tororo was better placed than the other general hospitals visited during the week, particularly in terms of infrastructure, equipment, staffing and available land.
They also noted that the facility had diagnostic equipment befitting a general hospital, in addition to significant support from development partners, including the Japan International Cooperation Agency, Baylor College of Medicine and the International Development Research Centre.
The committee, however, raised concern about poor hygiene, particularly in the maternity ward and outpatient department. “In all the hospitals we have visited, you are performing better except for hygiene. What we saw at the maternity ward and outpatient department can push away patients, I urge you to prioritise the washrooms,” said the committee deputy chairperson, Hon. Hope Nakazibwe.
She advised the hospital to consider using part of its Primary Health Care funds to construct and improve toilets and ensure there are cleaners on a daily basis.
MPs warned that poor hygiene could expose the high number of women seen at maternity ward to sepsis; a life-threatening condition that occurs when the body’s extreme response to an infection begins damaging its tissues and organs.
The committee advised the hospital to stop using formalin to disinfect its open placenta pit, warning that its use posed environmental and health risks.
The legislators also visited Masafu General Hospital in Busia District, where they were alarmed by reports that locals were being charged up to Shs200, 000 before bodies could be released from the mortuary. Others reportedly paid as much as Shs 40,000 to keep bodies at the facility for weeks, a practice hospital staff claimed had been adopted from neighbouring Kenya.
The district leadership was tasked to investigate the matter and decide whether to continue receiving bodies from the community, introduce an approved fee and remit the funds or discontinue the charges.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Parliament of the Republic of Uganda.
