Edna Adan Maternity Hospital

Hospital Tour: Follow this link to enjoy a tour of the hospital on its opening week.

Project Description

The Hospital represents private capital contributed by Mrs. Edna Adan Ismail who has already spent over US $350 000 on the project. The Hospital is designed to accommodate 23 women and their newborn babies, as well as 18 patients in the pediatric ward. As more personnel become trained, the plan is to expand the capacity of the Hospital as needed.

Construction of the first phase included a three-storey high building situated within a walled area that measures 9600 square meters of hitherto unused land. Upon completion of the hospital and the delivery of medical equipment, the Hospital has begun servicing the public through its qualified staff. Fees charged to patients are kept to an absolute minimum in the spirit and in the letter of a nonprofit earning institution. Fees are structured so as to ensure that the Hospital is kept at full capacity and that the patients are able to afford the services. Overhead running costs will also be met by a subsidy obtained through rent collected from shops that are part of the Hospital complex and which are situated on a main commercial road.

An Honorary Board of Trustees has been identified and invited by Mrs. Edna Adan Ismail to advise on Management and verify to the Authorities the Charity Status of the facility. The Board comprises persons of good standing from many different nationalities, as well as representatives of all the clans of Somaliland. In addition to Mrs. Edna Adan Ismail, the project initiator, an appointed Hospital Director and the Board of Hospital Administrators will be responsible for carrying out the day to day running of the Hospital.

Project Implementation

The site allocated by the authorities for this Hospital is situated in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, and is on the main road in front of the Bank of Somaliland at Dumbuluq. The Hospital is located in a less affluent area that contains a third of the population of the city. It is also situated in a part of the town that has never had a hospital or even a Primary Health Care facility in the past. The site is centrally and conveniently located, is well served by public transport and is easily accessible for emergency referral.

Aerial view of the Hospital (white building in the middle of the photograph)

The Project has the approval of the Government of Somaliland, and the Local Government of Hargeisa has donated the Land ( Documents for the official approval and allocation of Land for the purpose of this Hospital, facsimile Lr. 123/97 of 16 December 1997, from the Hargeisa Municipality ).

The hospital has its own generator to provide electricity, and is connected to the city piped water supply. It also contains a hot water solar generator located on the roof.

The initiator and principal donor of the hospital, Mrs. Edna Adan Ismail, began building on the 3rd of January 1998 and, together with a qualified engineer and foreman, has personally supervised the construction.

Upon completion of the construction, Mrs. Edna Adan Ismail, who has recently retired as a Representative of the World Health Organization, will administer the Hospital with an appointed Medical Director and a Team of Hospital Administrators. The Board of Trustees will provide supervision and guidance for the efficient running of the facility, and will also scrutinize the audit results.

Services Provided by the Hospital

The following services are currently provided by the hospital:

Patients are accommodated in rooms of different sizes to meet the needs of patients with different economic levels. There are rooms with four beds and some with one or two beds. All rooms have bathroom facilities attached.
Babies are accommodated with their mother, as the Hospital is a promoter of the Baby Friendly Concept.
Premature babies and those that need special medical attention are cared for in a suitably equipped Intensive Care Unit with Oxygen and Incubator facilities.
The Hospital has a Labour observation room as well as a Delivery room so that patients can be provided with the necessary supervision and care during all the different stages of childbirth.
Qualified medical and midwifery personnel monitor Maternal and Foetal conditions at all times.
To prevent the risk of infection to patients, all Surgical Instruments, as well as material used for dressings, are sterilized in a Central Sterilization facility staffed by suitably trained technicians.
Delivery of the newborn is carried out under strict aseptic conditions and by qualified personnel.
The Hospital has an Operating Theatre and provides surgical facilities for emergency obstetrical interventions at all times. Gynecological operations and other routine surgical operations are by appointment.
The Hospital has the capability of providing general, spinal and local anaesthesia.
The Hospital has Postoperative observation and Intensive Care facilities.

Cost to Patients

The Edna Adan Maternity Hospital, as a nonprofit health service, has its charity status verified by the Board of Trustees at all times.
Overhead charges and staff costs are partially covered through the subsidy obtained from the rent collected from the shops used for commercial purposes. The hospital running costs are met this way to ensure that patients have quality care and that their charge (on a cost sharing principle) is kept to a minimum.
Cost to patients is competitive and is calculated to be lower than the market rates.
Fees charged for room occupancy include full meals as well as general medical and nursing care while in the Hospital.
Fees for Surgical operations are calculated according to the individual intervention that each patient receives and as is required by the existing health condition that is being treated. The emphasis is on providing quality care at all times and on keeping the cost charged to patients at the absolute minimum.
Cost of Laboratory analysis is competitively priced according to the rate charged by the government Laboratories, and the accuracy and quality of testing is kept at a high level.
X-ray and Ultrasound imaging is calculated to be lower than current prevailing costs.

As a nonprofit charity, fees charged by the Hospital are established with the advice and guidance of the Hospital Trustees, and are publicly displayed so that the rates established for the conditions treated by the Hospital are available for the scrutiny of clients prior to admission.

Library, Training and Research Facilities

The Hospital has a Reference Medical Library that is accessible to health workers whether or not they are employed by the hospital.

The Hospital has a Computer Lab where medical students can receive computer training.

The Hospital encourages and facilitates periodic Seminars for health workers in order to provide intellectual stimulation and research opportunities to interested individuals.

Training opportunities will be offered to candidates whether or not they are employed by this hospital, provided they agree to abide by the strict rules and standards set for this hospital.