Located about 3Km from the centre of Blantyre, Chilomoni Health Centre was constructed in 1972 and serves a local population of around 64,000. The catchment community members are very poor, with high levels of unemployment. In common with many health facilities, the buildings have received little or no maintenance over the years.
Maternity Unit Upgrade:
As with many of the original buildings at Chilomoni Health Centre, the current Maternity Department, constructed in 1972, needed updating and renovation. Serving a population of around 64,000 people, an average of 92.7 babies are delivered every month, making this facility extremely busy. Antenatal mothers were sharing an overcrowded ward with postnatal mothers and often used a mattress on the floor or shared a bed. The solar panels were in good condition but the inverter and batteries needed replacing.
AMECA undertook a total renovation of the maternity unit, constructing separate wards for antenatal and post natal patients.
The Delivery Suite was re-designed to provide individual bays for mothers in labour, as the thin and rather old curtains provided little privacy. We also provided a new sluice and created office facilities.
A new inverter and new lithium batteries were purchased in order to provide backup solar power for essential equipment such as suctions machines and oxygen concentrators.
The photos above illustrate the new delivery bays, staff room, solar power installation and postnatal wards. The staff and patients greatly apprceiate their new modern facilities.
The renovated maternity unit re-opened on the 7th May 2025.
AMECA also implemented maternity mentorship for staff at the unit, involving the experienced staff who themselves were mentored for 2 years at The AMECA Health Centre at Chilaweni.
Pictured opposite is our first new baby, Ruthie, together with her proud mother, Christina.
For more detail on the renovations, click on this link.
Physiotherapy Unit Upgrade:
Located in an inaccessible portacabin at the far end of Chilomoni Health Centre, disabled patients struggled to reach this facility. The unit is staffed by Physiotherapist Charity and Rehab Assistant Madalitzo, who explained the challenges in delivering effective patient services due to lack of equipment, the distance of the facility from the main entrance to the health centre and the uneven terrain to be negotiated.
Having failed to find a suitable space for an alternative physio clinic, AMECA approached the John Hopkins Project, which has a lovely building on site at Chilomoni. We are so very grateful to John Hopkins staff, who have so kindly lent out a spare room in their building for use for physiotherapy. Sited very near the health centre entrance, this perfect space is ideal for disabled members of the community to access the facility.
After re-painting the room, we brought in our graphic artist Young, who created some fabulous murals.
The renovated physiotherapy room was fully equipped with ultrasound, a Tens machine, an infra-red lamp and other clinical equipment purchased in the UK. Our local carpenter Gibson made the rest of the equipment, which included standing frames, a wall ladder, training stairs and a Baobab bed.
The new Physiotherapy Unit runs daily and is staffed by 3 physiotherapists who provide treatment for both adult and paediatric patients. The staff comment that previously disaffected adult patients are now far more motivated by the cheerful and well equipped unit to participate with their exercises and therapy.
Pictured opposite is Raymond, aged 7, who suffers with Cerebral Palsy; Raymond is clearly delighted with the new toys!
The AMECA & MalDent Dental Clinic:
AMECA was alerted to a rather nice donated dental chair, housed in a very dilapidated room, which lacked the required connections, resulting in very limited dental service provision at Chilomoni Health Centre. The dental technician, Wisdom, asked if AMECA could somehow assist. AMECA contacted Emeritus Professor Jeremy Bagg, (Former Head of The University of Glasgow Dental School and Lead for the Scottish funded Maldent Project), whose great blogs were detailed in the Scotland Malawi Partnership newsletter.
We met up with Jeremy, Peter Chimimba, Malawi Lead for the MalDent Project, and Dr Kawalazira, (Blantyre DHO), to discuss ideas for developing an exemplar dental clinic at Chilomoni Health Centre. This initiative could provide a model for dental facilities in health centres and address dental provision at local facilities by the dental students graduating next year.
Initially, we intended to renovate the rather cramped existing dental room, but we did not feel that it was a suitable facility. With the assistance of the Blantyre District Health Officer, Dr Kawalazira, we identified a large and airy unused space in the Environmental Health building at Chilomoni.
The photos that follow show the extensive renovations carried out to create a new modern 2-surgery dental clinic, the first of its kind at health centre level.
Above, the new paediatric and adult dental surgeries, and the decontamination room.
Pictured left is professor Jeremy Bagg, together with Professor Lorna Macpherson, a core member of the Maldent team, together with new dental graduate Emmanuel and dental therapist Prince.
Specialist equipment, such as a new Compressor, X-Ray, an ultrasonic bath, an autoclave and a curing light, is being purchased from Henry Schein in South Africa. This equipment, together with the addition of a dentist will allow for the full range of dental services to be availble.