More than half of health facilities surveyed in Uganda are out of Mama Kits, basic supplies used to support safe childbirth, according to a Ministry of Health stock-status report released Aug. 14 at Golden Tulip hotel.
The report found that 51.5% of health facilities had completely run out of Mama Kits, while another 30% were understocked. This means more than four in five facilities surveyed either had no kits or did not have enough to meet their needs.
The shortage comes despite most maternal health commodities at the National Medical Stores being described as generally well stocked.
Supplies including tranexamic acid and magnesium sulphate, which are used to manage postpartum hemorrhage and eclampsia, were distributed to health facilities ranging from Health Centre IIIs to national referral hospitals in July, according to the report.
The disparity suggests that the challenge is not only the availability of commodities at national warehouses but also getting them to facilities where women need them.
The report also found that some facilities had excess supplies of other maternal and reproductive health commodities. Misoprostol was overstocked at 38.6% of facilities, while 21.7% reported excess oxytocin. Officials are encouraging health facilities to redistribute commodities between facilities to address these imbalances.
Health facilities have also been instructed to make greater use of the Online Facility Stock Status Report, which allows authorities to track commodity availability and identify facilities experiencing shortages.
The Ministry of Health is urging National Medical Stores to ensure facilities reporting stockouts receive supplies and to initiate inter-warehouse transfers where necessary.
The report’s findings highlight a gap between national commodity availability and what is actually reaching health facilities. While some essential medicines are available in national stores or are overstocked at individual facilities, women in other facilities may still arrive for delivery without access to basic supplies.
