Oshakati hospital stores records on floor, old beds

Oshakati State Hospital is struggling to manage patient records as space shortages and budget constraints force staff to use non-compliant, temporary storage facilities.

Photos seen by The Namibian show files on the floor, some of which appear soaked.

Member of parliament Job Amupanda took to social media on Monday, criticising the state of record-keeping at the hospital and warning of the risks this poses to patient care.

Amupanda says while the Affirmative Repositioning movement supports the government’s vision to improve public healthcare standards, implementation remains a major concern.

Acting medical superintendent Ndawapeka Nhinda this week said the hospital has resorted to temporary measures after running out of adequate storage space.

“The hospital has improvised with a corrugated iron storage facility, but this has not been completed due to budgetary constraints. We also put some of the patients’ files on unusable beds,” she said.

Nhinda acknowledged that the facility does not comply with provisions of national archives legislation, which has prompted the hospital to begin relocating some records.

“The place has not been in compliance with national archive act provisions. Hence the hospital tried to move some files to Ongwediva Document Warehouse after the place started getting humid,” she said.

She said although only a limited number of files initially remained at the hospital and could fit on shelves, the situation has worsened over time.

“Due to the growing number of patients, the files kept being stored there while the hospital keeps looking for funding and more space,” Nhinda said.

Amupanda, in his Facebook post, says: “With two weeks left until April, this is the current situation at Oshakati State Hospital. The medical records and history of our people is under water, termites, fungus. Indeed, the mice have made your medical files their beds.”

He stresses that medical records are critical in decision-making and should be properly safeguarded.

“Medical records are important, and sometimes life-changing decisions depend on it. This is not on,” Amupanda says.

The situation has also raised broader concerns about compliance with records management laws and the protection of sensitive government information.

OUTDATED ACT

Namibia Library and Archives Service deputy director Namutenya Hamwaalwa says the current Archives Act is outdated and requires urgent revision to address gaps in both physical and electronic record management.

“The act must be revised as a matter of urgency to ensure all government records are securely protected, as they reflect Namibia’s documentary heritage,” he says.

Hamwaalwa says the planned review, which has been approved by the Cabinet, will be conducted in consultation with key stakeholders, including the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) and the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology.

At the same time, the Office of the Prime Minister has raised concerns about data governance and security across government institutions. OPM spokesperson Rhingo Mutambo says directives have been issued prohibiting the use of public cloud services for hosting government data in the absence of a data protection bill and a national cloud policy.

“In the absence of enabling legislation, all official government data should be hosted strictly within Namibia’s borders.”

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.