Phillip Mwebaza
DJIBOUTI – The United States government has donated a US$4 million fully equipped mobile field hospital to the Djiboutian Ministry of Health through USAID, the Office of Security Cooperation, and Camp Lemonier to offer a safe environment for high-level medical services.
The well-equipped mobile field hospital provided to Djibouti will offer an immediate and practical alternative when conventional healthcare facilities are overloaded or unavailable owing to unexpectedly high demand.
This is the second deployable field hospital unit supplied by the US government to the Djiboutian government. This one is meant for civilian health needs, while the other is now used for military purposes by the Ministry of Defense.
The US Embassy in Djibouti disclosed that the United States government, the Office of Security Cooperation and Camp Lemonier handed over the fully equipped field hospital valued at US$4,000,00M to the Ministry of Health.
According to international standards, mobile field hospitals are made for governments, towns, hospitals, emergency services, and healthcare organisations that require easily deployable, life-saving medical facilities after a disaster or other emergency.
Furthermore, the fully functional field hospital, equipped with water supply, plumbing, power generators, and medical equipment, may be relocated to assist in disaster response or to lighten the strain on existing health care facilities.
During the handover ceremony, Djibouti’s Minister of Health, Dr. Ahmed Robleh Abdilleh, recognised that the field hospital is a significant contribution that highlights the two governments’ unmatched brotherly and sustainable partnership.
Mobile field hospitals are grouped into three levels: Level 1 for outpatient emergency treatment, Level 2 for inpatient acute care, general and obstetric surgery for trauma and other serious conditions, and Level 3 for sophisticated inpatient referral surgical care.
US Ambassador to Djibouti Jonathan Pratt emphasized the various components of the US-Djibouti collaboration, saying that the US was ready to engage with Djiboutian partners to ensure that significant contributions to health care, job development, education, and security benefit all Djiboutians.
According to Major General Shawley of the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa, the field hospital will allow Civil Affairs medical professionals to receive critical training alongside their Ministry of Health colleagues, significantly assisting Djiboutian health officials in saving lives and providing quality services.