Eye for Zambia collaborates with Macha Mission Hospital

Macha Mission Hospital serves a local population of about 150,000 in its catchment area. The Zambian Brethren in Christ (BIC) Church operates the Hospital. It opened in 1957 and has grown to a 208-bed facility with a full range of services. Separate inpatient wards are available for male, female, maternity, pediatrics, and TB/leprosy. Each inpatient ward houses 40-50 patients. Inpatients services include radiology, ultrasound, and a clinical laboratory providing basic studies. The hospital has an excellent reputation throughout Southern Zambia, with many patients coming from afar for treatment at the Hospital. Outpatient facilities include a primary health center, a general outpatient clinic, dental clinic, an eye clinic, and an HIV/AIDS clinic that provides antiretroviral therapy. Macha Mission Hospital conducts mobile maternal/child health programs at 17 area sites. In addition, the hospital operates a nurse’s training school. In the early 1990s, Macha Mission Hospital expanded its vision to include establishment of the Malaria Research Institute at Macha (MIAM). The Institute is now a field research site affiliated with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. More recently, the institute has changed its name to the Macha Research Trust, and is branching out in TB and HIV/AIDS research as well.