Witclei Clinic nurses are sometimes forced to rely on cellphone flashlights to treat patients during power outages because the facility has no backup generator.
Petrus Kaiseb, a nurse at the clinic, earlier this month told The Namibian the occasional power outages at the clinic can last for several days, creating difficulties for healthcare workers, particularly when patients need treatment at night.
“We don’t have a generator. There are times we see patients at night, and then you have to use the torch of your phone,” he said.
Kaiseb said the longest power outage experienced at the clinic lasted about three days after a fault involving a connector.
The lack of a backup power supply also affects the storage of vaccines, with the clinic forced to send vaccines back to the district during prolonged outages.
Kaiseb said the lack of a generator has been reported to supervisors on several occasions, but the clinic remains without one.
“We have been requesting,” he said.
He said working without electricity is particularly difficult during night-time emergencies, when nurses have to use their cellphones to provide light while attending to patients.
Kaiseb said the situation puts additional pressure on healthcare workers who are already expected to provide services despite limited resources.
“Sometimes we are fed up. We are all human beings, and, first of all, it’s my safety I’m risking,” he said.
He described a health facility operating without a generator as a serious concern, particularly in a rural community where access to alternative healthcare facilities is limited.
“It’s practically impossible for a facility to be without a generator,” Kaiseb said.
The Witvlei Clinic operates with four nurses and provides services to people from surrounding farms.
Kaiseb said the clinic continues to serve the community despite the challenges posed by unreliable electricity and limited emergency support.
Witvlei Village Council acting chief executive Kaarina Nakale says the council is not aware of recent power outages lasting up to three days at the clinic, adding that the problem was addressed last year.
“We fixed that problem already last year, and this rainy season, we didn’t have a power outage,” she says.
She says the clinic has not reported any power outages to the council.
“If they have a problem, they didn’t let us know.”
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