Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals has resumed operations in its radiotherapy unit after a two-and-a-half-year shutdown, offering a glimmer of hope to cancer patients who have faced prohibitive costs in the private sector. However, the hospital acknowledges that challenges remain due to a limited number of staff currently undergoing refresher courses to familiarize themselves with the radiotherapy machines. At full capacity, the department can treat 60 patients daily.
Presently, only 10 patients are receiving treatment, according to Nothando Mutizira, Head of Parirenyatwa's Radiology Department. Addressing the media yesterday, Dr. Mutizira confirmed that a radiotherapy unit has been repaired and is currently operational.
Due to the reduced capacity, the hospital is prioritizing patients based on the urgency of their conditions. "We are very excited that our radiotherapy machines have been fixed and so far we have one machine which is up and running. It started running two weeks ago so we've been gradually adding patients to this machine.
"As you know our machines have been down for over two and a half years so we've been gradually adding patients to our machines and whilst all cancers are a priority we are triaging our patients and putting them on the machine based on agency...
" Mutizira said She added "So right now like I mentioned again we are slowly adding patients so far we have 10 patients as of today who are on the machine. We hope to add another six this week and we'll be.