Ministry of Health and Social Services spokesperson Walters Kamaya has acknowledged the dilapidated state of the Windhoek Central Hospital’s nurses’ home.
Kamaya says street children and stray cats are rummaging through waste bins in the vicinity.
The acknowledgment follows a concerned citizen’s public sharing of photos depicting the unhygienic and deteriorating conditions of the nurses’ home.
“The assessment by the health environmental inspectors revealed that three blocks in the nurses’ home were not well maintained by the health ministry staff,” Kamaya said.
He said homeless children and stray cats searching for food often scatter garbage around the area. Due to a shortage of staff, maintenance workers had been transferred to other departments, leaving the blocks in disrepair until renovations, which are in the pipeline, he added.
“We are actively exploring measures to address people removing items from dustbins.”
One of the staff members who is accommodated at the nurses’ home said, “It’s only the outside that looks dilapidated; the inside is entirely okay and in a stable state”.
She said one block still houses residents, while those in the other three blocks have either moved out or are in the process of relocating to facilitate ministry renovations.
We maintain some damaged things ourselves because we live here, she says.
Another staff member living in the same block since 2018, said it is challenging to maintain cleanliness due to the constant movement of people.
“People move in and out, and some cooperate, while others don’t. We used to create a cleaning roster but it’s not easy,” she said. Regarding infrastructure, she noted that the rooms are stable.
Two other staff members at the block emphasised the need for toilet renovations.
They said staff from the works ministry assist with fixing broken things when requested, and the ministry has informed residents about the upcoming renovations, with eviction letters expected.
Non-functioning lifts, broken windows and cracked walls were also observed.
The nurses’ home, designed for nursing students, currently houses only health ministry staff.
Namibian Correctional Service (NCS) commissioner general Raphael Hamunyela responded positively to calls for correctional inmates to clean the area.
“We can do it, it’s very much possible. It’s part of our responsibility to ensure that we are in a clean environment,” Hamunyela said, adding that the NCS can assist if a request is sent to the head office.
City of Windhoek spokesperson Lydia Amutenya confirmed that the city assists when requested to do assessments, despite the health ministry having its own health environmental inspectors.
The nurses’ home comprises four blocks, each with eight floors.
Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) director Toni Hancox, who raised the alarm around the state of the facility, says the state of the nurses’ home is horrific and something must be done about it.
“It just requires commitment and planning to get the area cleaned up.
There are a lot of unemployed youth that can be given jobs or inmates to clean up.
“I didn’t drive there for a while and driving there last week and seeing the place look like that, with people who are responsible for health living there …” said Hancox.
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