A Leaked internal letter from Onandjokwe Intermediate Hospital shows that the hospital suspended all elective surgical procedures from yesterday after running out of critical anaesthetic agents required for general anaesthesia.
The document, dated 13 April, was signed by specialist anaesthetist and head of department Dr Loini Shivolo-Hamutu and circulated to surgical heads of department, senior medical officers and nurse managers.
According to the letter, the hospital is experiencing a shortage of critical hypnotic anaesthetic agents, with similar supply constraints also affecting the Central Medical Stores (CMS), the country’s main pharmaceutical distribution hub.
“There is currently a shortage of critical hypnotic aneasthetic agents that are required for the administration of general anesthesia,” the leaked letter states.
It further instructs that all elective procedures be suspended with effect as of yesterday until further notice.
“This measure is necessary to prioritise the use of the limited available supplies for emergency cases,” the letter reads.
The letter notes that further communication would be issued once stock levels have been restored.
The letter was brought up in the National Assembly yesterday, where Independent Patriots for Change member of parliament Lilani Brinkman gave notice that she will question health and social services minister Esperance Luvindao on the matter on 23 April.
Brinkman said the reported shortages have raised concerns about “the continuity of care, patient safety and the operational stability of public health facilities”.
Among the questions she intends to put to the minister are whether the ministry is aware of the shortages, which specific anaesthetic agents are out of stock, and how widespread the problem is across public health facilities countrywide.
She also asked what the underlying causes of the stock-outs are, particularly at the CMS, what the ministry’s timeline is for procurement and replenishment, and what measures are being put in place to strengthen supply chain management and forecasting systems.
In a related intervention, Affirmative Repositioning leader Job Amupanda has told the National Assembly the suspension of elective procedures had already taken effect.
“As we speak, those operations are not taking place,” he says.
Amupanda distinguishes between elective and emergency surgical cases, adding that the decision taken by doctors was aimed at preserving the limited stock for urgent life-saving interventions.
He also questions what support and intervention is being provided at executive level to address the shortage, saying the matter is one of life and death.
The health ministry had not commented on the leaked letter, the reported stock shortages, or the suspension of elective procedures by the time of publication.
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