Care at the Thierno Mouhamadou Mansour Barro Hospital in Mbour: A citizens' collective denounces a "death trap" and issues an ultimatum to the State

The And Saytu Sunnu Wergu Yaram collective is raising its voice in response to the deteriorating conditions of care at the Thierno Mouhamadou Mansour Barro Hospital in Mbour. During a press conference held this weekend, its members painted an alarming picture of the hospital's operations and formulated seven demands they deem essential to guaranteeing the right to healthcare for the population of the department.

According to Cheikh Anta Goudiaby, a member of the collective, the mobilization aims to unite all the active forces of Mbour around a civic struggle, far removed from any political or union considerations.

"We want all the people of Mbour to take this problem to heart in order to find lasting and sustainable solutions," he said, recalling that several initiatives had already been undertaken by their predecessors, without achieving the expected results.

The group believes that the current malfunctions directly endanger lives. "It's incomprehensible that a hospital located in a crossroads city like Mbour can operate with so many shortcomings that could lead to deaths. Patients struggle to access care and are often forced to turn to private clinics where costs are very high," denounced Cheikh Anta Goudiaby.

Emphasizing the apolitical nature of their approach, he states that their sole objective is to alert the authorities and obtain concrete answers.

"We are tired of promises. We are simply demanding access to healthcare, which is a fundamental right for every Mbour resident. We ask the Head of State to look into this issue and put in place an action plan with a monitoring and evaluation mechanism involving all stakeholders," he added.

Seven priority demands

The group is demanding, in particular: the immediate strengthening of human resources and the quality of care in public health facilities; guaranteed continuity of care for all patients; the implementation of temporary solutions pending the full restoration of services; the sustainable strengthening of the technical infrastructure of Mbour's health facilities; the upgrading of the Thierno Mouhamadou Mansour Barro Hospital to a level 3 facility; the recruitment and permanent availability of qualified healthcare personnel; and the presentation of a detailed action plan, including an implementation schedule and a transparent monitoring system. The group states its readiness to participate in any dialogue initiative aimed at sustainably improving access to healthcare in the department.

"This hospital is a death trap."

Speaking at the event, Oumar Sarr, a resident of Sandiara, gave a particularly harsh account of the situation: "This hospital is a death trap. Senegalese authorities do not seek treatment in our hospitals; when they are sick, they go abroad."

He points out that the institution serves more than one million inhabitants spread across the sixteen municipalities of the Mbour department.

According to him, patients are routinely directed to private facilities just minutes after their arrival. "They tell you the ambulance is broken down or there's no fuel. It's as if there's collusion between the public and private sectors," he denounced, calling on President Diomaye Faye and National Assembly President Ousmane Sonko to put aside political disputes and focus on the concerns of the people.

Warnings ignored for over ten years

For his part, Alphonse Diop asserts that warnings have been multiplying since 2015 without a satisfactory response. He particularly deplores the lack of a scanner and radiology department, the critical shortage of beds sometimes forcing two women who have just given birth to share the same bed, as well as patients treated in the emergency room lying on the floor due to a lack of available space.

For the group, these shortcomings reflect a health emergency that requires rapid intervention from the State in order to guarantee the people of Mbour dignified and equitable access to care.