Mulago National Referral Hospital has raised alarm over a looming staffing and logistical crisis in the treatment of HIV/AIDS patients following the United States Government’s decision to end aid funding to Uganda.
Dr. Rosemary Byanyima, Executive Director of Mulago Hospital, highlighted these concerns while appearing before Parliament’s Health Committee to present the hospital’s 2025/26 Ministerial Policy Statement.
She warned that the hospital, which is already operating at just 67% of its required staffing levels, now faces additional strain as thousands of HIV/AIDS patients previously supported under donor-funded projects must now be incorporated into Mulago’s system.
“We see challenges in that because we have challenges in staffing, and these clinics are really heavy. Each of the organisations I have talked about sees not less than an average of 50 to 100 patients per day, each one of them,” she said.
Byanyima added, “If all those have to come to us, then we really need staffing, we need space where to run that clinic, laboratory services, managing of the records. They had already established an electronic system which was capturing and even following up with these patients to make sure that they adhere to the treatment.”
She revealed that following the stop-work order by U.S. President Donald Trump, Mulago Hospital has integrated HIV care into the infectious disease clinic within the medical patient department while continuing to offer inpatient services as before.
However, she highlighted a major challenge in logistics management for antiretroviral therapy.
“We also have a challenge of how we manage the logistics of antiretroviral therapy, but our medicines and therapeutics committee is gathering all this information from the partners who have been offering that, and we are in touch with the Ministry of Health for guidance,” Dr. Byanyima added.
She informed parliament that the current staffing level at Mulago National Referral Hospital stands at 1,374 filled positions, which is 67% of the newly approved structure. However, this structure is serving two hospitals, as Mulago has been split into two health facilities.
Dr. Byanyima explained, “The 67% looks fair maybe compared to other hospitals, but remember this is the structure for Mulago Hospital, and the plan is to have Mulago National Referral Hospital and Mulago National Specialised Hospital, which is supposed to have another structure. But this is not it. It was created as a different entity with its own structure. So, we are literally running two hospitals as Mulago National Referral Hospital.”
The hospital is concerned that the sudden influx of patients will lead to severe shortages in essential drugs, medical supplies, and personnel, further straining an already overburdened healthcare system.
The situation could significantly impact the quality of care, leading to potential interruptions in treatment for HIV/AIDS patients, which would pose serious health risks.
Dr. Byanyima called on the government to urgently address the shortfall by increasing funding to the hospital, hiring additional healthcare workers, and ensuring a steady supply of essential medicines to prevent a crisis in patient care.
