Cancer Institute Sets New Charges for Radiotherapy services
The executive director, Uganda cancer institute, Dr. Jackson Orem confirms that there will be no more free service offered to patients at the Uganda cancer institute as the institute now looks out for funds to facilitate the running of business at the facility.
Addressing journalists at (UCI) Dr. Jackson Oremexplained that the new charges imposed on patients seeking radiotherapy treatment are part of government policy that makes, government agencies to become self-empowered for sustainability.
The confirmation comes at a time when the institute released a new patient’s charge sheet with patients in general section to pay UGX.10, OOO for ultra sound services and x-ray and private plus foreigners to payUGX.300, 000 for radiotherapy.
He said that the decision to new charges was made by the board of the institute for the sustainability of the institute for effective service delivery.
Dr. Orem accompanied by Dr. Fred Okuku, a consultant oncologist at the institute state that, the institute has for long been under funded despite the continued extension of services to Ugandans and non-Ugandans, hence the need to have new charges for services to supplement the limited budgetary allocations from govt.
The institute sees over 50,000 cases annually with foreigners accounting for 15% of the total number of patients seen every year including refugees.
