Botswana: Jwaneng Mine Hospital celebrates special quality improvement milestone

Superintendent Dr Mwamba Nsebula of Jwaneng Mine Hospital proudly holds the COHSASA Accreditation Certificate – the fifth awarded to his hospital. Pictured with him (from left) are Marilyn Keegan, COHSASA Communications Manager; Kgosi Nkaelang Lekgoa; Ms Baile Moagi Deputy Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Health and Wellness in Botswana; Mr Cornelius Dekop, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security; Mr Albert Milton, General Manager

This fifth award signifies that not only has the hospital reached international standards but has consistently maintained them for over a decade and a half!

Led by a masterful Director of Ceremonies, Tumie Ramsden, the Debswana Club was beautifully decorated and filled with hospital doctors, nurses and administrators in finest array; a swirl of gold and silver and shimmering evening gowns.

Dignitaries included Mr Cornelius Dekop, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security; Mr Albert Milton, the General Manager of Jwaneng Mine and Ms Baile Moagi, the Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Wellness.

But the centre of gravity turned around the hospital personnel who had worked so hard to ensure that Jwaneng met international standards yet again. This hospital that serves a catchment population of 80,000 – well beyond the miners and their families – is setting an excellent example of how quality and safe healthcare can be delivered to patients on a sustainable basis.

The evening started off with some brisk marimba playing by the pupils from the Acadia Primary School and what a wonderful performance they gave! It set the tone for the rest of the evening; joy and celebration.

A wonderful dinner was served interspersed with speeches, dancing, music performances and an energetic DJ.

All departments that achieved over 80 (and that meant all the departments in the hospital) received certificates and the 'big' one – the accreditation certificate – was handed over to Dr Mwamba Nsebula, Superintendent of Jwaneng Hospital – by Ms Baile Moagi.

Highlights of the evening...

The Katrin Kleijnhans Quality Trophy is awarded to an individual, a unit, a department or a discipline in a healthcare facility that made the most impressive or substantial contribution to quality improvement during the COHSASA accreditation process.

The recipient is not selected by COHSASA but is chosen by the appropriate authority at the healthcare facility.

At Jwaneng, the award was jointly shared by Victoria Phenyo Botlhole, the Quality Assurance Coordinator of Jwaneng Hospital and the Occupational Therapy Department of the hospital, represented by Dr Keletso Maribe (pictured here together holding the trophy).

After its initial presentation, it is hoped that the trophy will become an annual internal floating trophy, given to a deserving recipient at the facility. It is also envisaged that the name on the trophy will become synonymous with the values, efforts and rewards involved in continuing quality improvement and serve to encourage and acknowledge all such efforts in the future.

Welcoming guests, the General Manager of Jwaneng Mine, Mr Albert Milton said, “This re-accreditation bears testimony to Jwaneng Mine’s strong commitment to providing safe healthcare practices of a reputable quality. This resonates well with our value system ‘Putting Safety First’ and caring for our people.”

Mr Milton said the hospital’s continuing success with accreditation had led to the mine management’s decision to continue allocating resources to the hospital where in 2017 the total allocated budget was 80 million pula (R104,296,000).

“This goes towards providing better health service for over 30,000 Jwaneng inhabitants, plus all patients from the surrounding villages and all motorists on the whole stretch of the Trans-Kalahari highway,” he said.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we are proud of our association with COHSASA, which has been instrumental in our quality improvement endeavours. To this end, Jwaneng Mine Hospital has embarked on a hospital expansion project which will reposition us as a healthcare facility comparable to any facility of its size, anywhere in the world,” he said.

Members of the Jwaneng Mine Hospital Choir file in for a medley of wonderful harmony.

In his keynote address, the permanent secretary of Ministry of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security, Mr Cornelius Dekop, said that accreditation was a worthwhile long-term investment to secure a future of quality health care for the citizens of Botswana.

“Jwaneng Mine Hospital is a true representative of Debswana’s philosophy, that its entrepreneurial success should be underpinned by social and economic responsibility. I am informed that this philosophy has at its core, the belief in turning diamond dreams into lasting reality, and aims at creating, building and maintaining sustainable partnerships with members of the community. That way, communities can benefit from the legacy of diamonds in a real, lasting and significant way.

“On behalf of the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security, I call on everyone to do their best to keep up this great tradition.

“Ultimately, this tradition is an investment, a platform to promote dialogue on fundamental initiatives towards the success of our health sector nationally.

“We are proud to celebrate Jwaneng Mine Hospital’s fifth re-accreditation by COHSASA. We look forward to many more fruitful years of cooperation and exchange.”

Mr Albert Milton, General Manager of Jwaneng Mine, congratulates the hospital on its magnificent achievement.

Jacqui Stewart, CEO of COHSASA said that “this accreditation ceremony is indeed an auspicious occasion, with Jwaneng having achieved five consecutive accreditation awards. These have been achieved through the dedication and hard work of you and your team and you can all be justifiably proud. The users of your services always know that the hospital will be functioning well and the standards of care will be high. Congratulations!”

Jwaneng Mine Hospital has been in the COHSASA accreditation programme since 2002 (from 2002 to 2004; from 2007-2009, from 2009-2012, from 2014 to 2017 and from 2017 until 2020).

In 2006 the hospital scored 86.71 on average, was given a focus survey and asked to resubmit for a final evaluation for accreditation.

This was because some aspects of the infection prevention and control programme needed further development and implementation and some legal requirements had to be met. These outstanding criteria were indeed met and the hospital was accredited from 2007 to 2009.

Mr Cornelius Dekop, Permanent Secretary in the Botswana Ministry of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security, discusses accreditation as a long-term investment.

By the time Jwaneng was surveyed again in 2009, eight service elements scored a full 100 and the overall score of the hospital was 97! This time Jwaneng was accredited for three years. In 2014 – eight service elements again scored 100 and the overall score of the hospital was 96. At their survey last year, most of the service elements at Jwaneng scored in the high 90s and 11 service elements scored 100.

The most recent overall score for the hospital was 99 out of a possible 100.

COHSASA is now in its 23nd year of operation. It has worked with more than 600 facilities across Africa and it is the only ISQua-accredited healthcare evaluation body on the continent.