OUR WORK SUPPORTS
MENGO HOSPITAL
Established in 1897 by Sir Albert Ruskin Cook, Mengo is the first hospital in East Africa and has been providing care for underserved communities in Kampala ever since.
Located on Namirembe Hill in Rubaga Division, just two kilometers from Kampala's central business district, Mengo Hospital serves the capital city, its neighboring districts, and patients from neighboring countries in East Africa, including Sudan, South Sudan, Kenya, and Rwanda.
Founded initially to address the community's spiritual and physical healthcare needs, Mengo Hospital has grown significantly ever since. It is now an urban community hospital that functions as a teaching, research, and referral center. While serving as a core pillar of the healthcare system in Kampala, Mengo Hospital still needs significant support to provide Ugandans with the resources they need to prevent and treat diseases according to international standards of care. With over 300 beds, Mengo Hospital manages an average of 250,000 outpatient visits and nearly 15,000 admissions annually. The hospital operates 24/7, stretching its resources to provide healthcare services for the region surrounding Kampala.
OUR WORK SUPPORTS
MENGO HOSPITAL
Established in 1897 by Sir Albert Ruskin Cook, is the first hospital of Uganda, and it has been forging the challenging path to serve an underserved community ever since.
Located on Namirembe Hill in Rubaga Division just 2 kilometers from Kampala's central business district, Mengo Hospital serves Kampala City, neighboring districts, and even other countries such as Sudan, Kenya, and Rwanda.
Originally founded to address both the spiritual and physical needs of the people, Mengo Hospital has grown significantly over the past 122 years. It is now an urban community hospital that functions as a teaching, research, and referral center. While serving as a core pillar of the healthcare system in Uganda, Mengo Hospital still needs significant support to develop the modern amenities that will streamline operations, expand services, and give Ugandans the resources they need to prevent disease and treat illness up to modern standards of care. With a capacity of 331 beds, Mengo Hospital manages an average of 246,000 outpatient visits and 14,000 admissions annually.
The hospital operates 24/7, stretching its resources to provide healthcare services for the region surrounding Kampala.
CHILDREN’S HEALTH AT MENGO HOSPITAL
The mission of Mengo Hospital Partners (MHP) is to partner with Mengo Hospital to deliver transformative pediatric care and improve child health in Uganda. With MHP's support, Mengo Hospital is currently establishing a campus expansion plan focused on children and their families, with the ultimate goal of creating a model of care for children with routine and complex illnesses.
CHILD CARE CENTER
The initial step will be to create a new child care center capable of supporting current staff and their need for child care, focusing on infants.
Women comprise 67% of the healthcare workforce worldwide, and WHO projects a shortage of healthcare workers by 2030. Countries like Uganda feel this pressure acutely. In addition to technology limitations, capacity restrictions, and resource scarcity, Mengo Hospital faces a staffing shortage that significantly hampers healthcare delivery. Female healthcare workers in Uganda are particularly difficult to retain because of childcare responsibilities; as women become mothers, they vanish from the workforce, leaving hospitals struggling to replace valuable workforce resources.
To mitigate this facet of Uganda’s healthcare needs, we will help the hospital establish a comprehensive Child Care Center for staff members' infants. This new facility will enable hospital employees to bring their young children to an on-site daycare center, providing a valuable, trusted, and convenient service for the Hospital’s dedicated team.
PEDIATRICS AND OUTPATIENT BUILDING
In the next phase, we will develop a new Pediatrics and Outpatient Building designed around holistic care models. This project will transform the small pediatrics unit into a Pediatrics Department that will expand outpatient and inpatient services, including updated neonatal and other intensive care units. This step is an essential beginning to improving infant and child mortality rates as well as managing preventable chronic diseases. The Pediatric Department will increase the pediatric unit by four times its current size and greatly expand its capabilities to serve children. The critical care unit will include 40 neonatal and pediatric intensive care beds and two operating theaters. Dedicated clinics for immunization, nutrition, neurodiversity centers, and mental health will serve all families. It will also include a new emergency ward and radiology service in addition to expanded outpatient space and medical delivery that will support the care of both children and adults.
PEDIATRIC CENTER OF EXCELLENCE
In the third phase, we plan to build a Pediatric Center of Excellence, which will transform pediatric care for children in Kampala and beyond. This lofty goal seeks to consolidate pediatric care in a single, purpose-built facility, resulting in a centralized home for pediatric care, from general medicine to multiple subspecialty disciplines such as cardiology and nephrology. It will be a sustainable service that will train future pediatricians and nurses.