Maputo — The Emergency Department of Maputo Central Hospital (HCM), the largest health unit in Mozambique, received, during the festive season, 611 trauma patients, 153 of whom were injured as the result of road accidents, followed by 142 patients who suffered falls.
According to Justino Madeira, head of emergency services at the HCM, who was speaking to reporters on Tuesday, in Maputo, the figure was recorded during the period between December 25 and January 1.
"We also recorded the entrance of 59 patients who suffered physical aggression', he said, explaining that a total of 3,941 patient were received during the festive season, compared to 3,920 in the same period last year.
It means, he said, there was an increase of 21 cases, of which 3,330 were due to illness and 611 due to trauma.
" We had 19 cases of patients suffering from burns, compared to 13 at the same time last year, and we had a total of 22 deaths, an increase of three compared to the same period last year, where 17 were due to illness and five were due to trauma', Madeira said.
He also explained that of the 3,941 cases admitted to the hospital's emergency services, 2,990 went to adult services, 209 to the gynecology emergency department, 332 to the delivery room, 766 to the special clinic, 307 to the pediatrics emergency department and a total of 37 patients to forensic medicine.
The data also points to a reduction in cases of domestic and sexual violence compared to the same period last year.
"In terms of domestic violence, we had 20 cases compared to 25 last year and in terms of sexual violence we also had a reduction over the two holiday periods, with a total of eight compared to 10 last year', Madeira said.
He explained that the HCM had enough staff, around 11 doctors, and sufficient means to respond to demand.
"We were able to respond to all requests, including those for blood, where we satisfied 492 requests', he added.
Madeira classified the festive season as calm, since there were not many worrying cases, with few cases of trauma compared to last year and attributes the merit to the awareness-raising done at community level to control tempers.
