07 September 2021, Molepolole: The Scottish Livingstone Hospital in Molepolole hosted an event that introduced a team of critical care specialists arrived in Botswana to support the response of medical care facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The Ministry of Health and Wellness (MoHW) has been at the forefront of the national COVID-19 response, in addition to ensuring continuity of essential health services. Nearly two years into the pandemic, the MoHW has reviewed the implementation model for the national COVID-19 response to improve patient health outcomes and bring services closer to the community. The Scottish Livingstone hospital has been identified as one of the referral centres to attend the moderate to severe COVID-19 patients, serving the districts in the southern corridor of the country. 

To provide additional medical support for COVID-19 cases during the third wave of infections, the team of WHO emergency medical technicians comprising of two critical care doctors and four critical care nurses were deployed to Botswana. In consultation with the District Health Management Teams (DHMTs) in Greater Gaborone and Francistown areas, the international medical team support directly the specialized personnel in several hospitals, including the Scottish Livingstone. 

Speaking at the event, the Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Edwin Dikoloti said “I wish to applaud the WHO for being so generous and kind enough not to forget us at this great hour of need. It is for this reason that today we are gathered here to officially receive the WHO Emergency Medical Team (EMT). The arrival and deployment of this medical team have undoubtedly added value to our response energies and complemented our efforts in the implementation of the response plan, specifically with regards to the management of COVID-19 positive patients”.

The WHO Representative to Botswana, Dr Josephine Namboze in her remarks explained that “the emergence of COVID-19 pandemic acted as an accelerator for the implementation of the EMT initiative of WHO in the African region. From February 2020 multiple teams were deployed to support the management of severe and critical COVID-19 cases, the improvement of the infection prevention control (IPC) practices among health workers, the assessment of health facilities, and the Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) practices”. She further noted “This is an occasion to acknowledge once more the WHO's continuous collaboration and joint efforts with the MoHW. The event today is to appreciate the team and the hosting hospital that serves as a centre of referral for the southern corridor".

The event proceedings included a tour of the COVID-19 isolation facilities within the hospital, which had recently been upgraded according to the WHO consultant’s recommendations. During the tour, Dr Merero Ntshese, the Head of Isolation Unit at the hospital remarked that "these isolation wards will make up the southern corridor to strengthen high-level care for COVID-19 patients on the southern part of Botswana. This was a collaborative effort, with the help of the WHO team that assessed the designated wards and developed recommendations to make the wards safer and ensure the provision of good care for patients". The opening of this high care ward aims to relieve the Sir Ketumile Masire Teaching Hospital (SKMTH) in Gaborone. "It also prepares us for the possible upcoming wave of COVID-19” continued Dr Ntshese.
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The Scottish Livingstone Hospital is located in the village of Molepolole in the Kweneng District, the Southern region of Botswana. The facility was officially opened to the public in September 1934 with 20 beds. It was upgraded in 2007 to a 350-bed capacity servicing the 72,000-person population of Molepolole village.