Beatific Gumbwanda
CHIREDZI – Tongaat Hulett Zimbabwe (THZ) run Collin Saunders Hospital is now one of the most ancient hospitals in the Lowveld, having been established in 1964, but is still providing best services to its employees and the surrounding communities.
Speaking to editors and journalists during a THZ-facilitated media tour, Senior Doctor Sheckie Percy Mashange who is the Public Health Medicine Specialist at Collin Saunders Hospital said though the facility is ancient, it remains one of the best medical facilities in the country.
Dr Mashange said the hospital is well equipped with an advanced theatre, radiographic department as well as a well-equipped pharmacy.
“It is quite an old institution, like what the General Manager has highlighted. It was established in 1964 but it remains one of the best hospitals in the country. We have 150 beds, a very advanced radiographic department and an advanced theatre. We also have a well-equipped and stocked pharmacy and it is one of our best running units in the country,” said Dr Mashange.
“Our reputation is good and we serve a population of about 50 000 employees and their dependents as well as the community around us. In total, we serve about 200 000 patients per year and that is quite sizeable compared to other hospitals you have seen. When Dr David Parirenyatwa was still the Minister of Health and Child Care, he used to come here with government pharmacists, showing them how a pharmacy should look like and they ended up taking one of our staff members to be a board member at Natpham,” he added.
The company runs two hospitals, Collin Saunders Hospital in Triangle and Hippo Valley Medical Center in Hippo Valley as well as five clinics that feeds into these hospitals, catering for their employees and their dependents as well as the community around.
THZ Managing Director, Tendai Masawi said, apart from growing and milling sugar the company was running two state of the art hospitals as well as five clinics in its sections servicing their employees and their dependents.
“The company runs two hospitals with 10 doctors and five clinics which take care of employees, dependents and the community around us,” said Masawi.
Collin Saunders Hospital was established in 1964, ten years after the establishment of Triangle Limited while Hippo Valley estates was established in 1956. It has 70 nursing staff.
The company also runs 22 schools under its umbrella and five of those are High Schools with a combined total enrolment of 16 000 learners.
