Consultation/Treatment : When Patience Is Highly Needed!

At the main entrance of most public hospitals in the city of Yaounde is found the building on which is written outpatient consultation unit. This is the gateway for any patient into the different departments of any hospital. From the outpatient unit, a patient begins a journey of patience which goes through medical interrogation, physical examination, complementary medical examination, diagnosis, treatment and surveillance of any health problem. The process could last a week or more depending on the health problem at hand.
In line with the conference on “Public Hospital: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow”, Cameroon Tribune took a tour to some public hospitals in Yaounde to recount how it goes when a patient visits the premises. At the Yaounde Central Hospital, some six nurses could be seen at the outpatient consultation unit. At that point, they were playing the role of receptionists receiving and orienting patients. At the unit, over 50 patients could be seen. Some had come for consultation for their first time, others to see a specialised doctor according to their appointment date. One of the patients, who was coming for consultation with the daughter for the first time seemed confused. “I have been sitting here for over 30 minutes, but my daughter is yet to see a doctor”, she lamented. She continued, noting that her daughter had seen one of the nurses, who gave her a consultation book and asked her to pay the consultation fees at the financial desk.
The Coordinator of External Consultation at the hospital, Professor Firmin Ankouane, says any patient who comes for consultation at the hospital goes through the nurses at the receptionist who take his/her medical perimeters and orientate the patient to the available doctors on duty. The doctor, who is usually a general practitioner, receives the patient, carries out medical interrogation before orientating the patient to a specialised doctor depending on the stake at h...