Lubondai is an 80-bed institution in the rural Kasai region. It is the centerpiece of the Lubondai Mission, founded in 1924 by the American Presbyterian Congo Mission. Lubondai Hospital was built in 1933, consisting of patient wards, a surgical suite, laboratory, pharmacy and outpatient dispensary. Over the next 25 years a maternity ward and a pediatric ward were added.
The Institut Médical Chrétien du Kasai (Christian Medical Institute of the Kasai) was established in Lubondai in 1954 and graduated its first three classes before the program was disrupted by the conflicts of independence. After a lapse of two years classes were re-established and then moved to its permanent and present site at Tshikaji, near the city of Kananga.
Repeated political and economic turmoil has taken a toll on the hospital's facilities and required staff to take extraordinary measures to maintain an adequate level of service. For example, when the hospital's 80-year old single well was no longer functioning, hospital "ward girls" walked to a spring 45 minutes away to obtain water for patients and staff. Funds for a new water system are needed. Funds from PCUSA last year covered the cost of reproofing and making many of the needed repairs to the hospital.
Today, Lubondai Hospital, under the leadership of Medical Director Dr. Mbuyi Muyumba , is a reference hospital for the government's rural health system, serving a population of 72,000 in the health zone. Programs at the Lubondai Mission are coordinated through our partner church, the Presbyterian Community of Congo.
Lubondai Hospital receives financial assistance through PC(USA) Extra Commitment Opportunties (Account #862762) and through the Medical Benevolence Foundation, which is providing support for the new water system. |
