By A Correspondent

Norton Hospital, which serves over 100,000 people, is struggling to operate without an X-ray machine, despite being designed for a patient load of around 40,000.

Norton Member of Parliament Richard Tsvangirai recently questioned the Ministry of Health and Child Care about the hospital’s X-ray machine, which has been out of service for some time.

In October 2018, then Health and Child Care Minister Obadiah Moyo visited the hospital and assured that plans were at an advanced stage to increase the hospital’s access to government funding and improve its facilities, eliminating the need to refer patients to hospitals in Harare after accidents.

However, years later, the hospital still refers critical cases from Norton to Harare or Chegutu, with health equipment continuing to deteriorate.