Church hospitals restore sight, health in Sierra Leone

Key points:

• Dr. John G. Mattia is Sierra Leone’s only pediatric ophthalmologist and his work entails restoring eyesight to babies, the young and old.
• United Methodist health facilities offer services to all members of the community, despite their religious affiliation or inability to pay.
• The United Methodist Board of Global Ministries has supported revitalization of the Kissy United Methodist General Hospital and provided solar power to counter outages.

Dr. John G. Mattia briefly looks up from the delicate surgery he is performing. His eyes sparkle as he explains his work restoring sight to patients of all ages with various eye conditions that cause blindness.

“I love the smile that I put on people’s faces. After surgery they can see properly the next day, and that gives me satisfaction,” he said.

Mattia of the Lowell and Ruth Gess United Methodist Church Eye Hospital is the sole pediatric ophthalmologist in Sierra Leone. He is renowned for performing eye surgeries for newborns, the young and aged for the past 18 years.

For patients with cataracts in both eyes, he operates one eye at a time. “This is to prevent the risk of infection,” he said, returning to the procedure he was performing.

Mattia said 40% of cataracts in the developing world are age-related — found in adults over 50 — but children can also be born with the condition. Trauma to the eyes and infection may also cause cataracts.

Surgeries are performed on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with children and babies forming the bulk of the patients on Thursdays.

In a ward away from the surgical wing, Alieu Sow, 72, lies on a hospital bed, one eye strapped with bandages, while his worried daughter stands beside him.

“I had cataract removal surgery on my left eye, which was almost blind,” he told UM News. “I have been told I will be able to see again tomorrow when these bandages are removed,” he said with a withered smile.

His right eye stares blankly at the ceiling. It is cloudy, indicating it also has a mature cataract. Sow plans to return for a second surgery once the left eye has healed.

In the consulting area, Amadu Saidu Cointeh was getting tested for spectacles.

“My left eye can’t see clearly. Medication didn’t resolve the problem. The optometrist is testing to see if glasses can improve my vision,” he said.

The eye hospital was established in 1984 by Dr. Lowell Gess, a U.S. missionary who died in 2022 at the age of 100.

Different partners support the facility, including Christian Blind Mission in Germany, which refurbished the hospital and administration blocks to accommodate the hundreds of patients seeking eyecare services at the hospital, administrator Augustine Kutubu-Kosia said.

After surgery, patients are admitted for one day in the wards, which accommodate 24 adults and six children.

“The most common conditions we treat in adults are cataracts, glaucoma, conjunctivitis, uveitis (red eye, which is difficult to manage and can lead to blindness). Children often present with cataracts, congenital retinal blastoma (cancer) and cornea laceration,” Kutubu-Kosia said.

The United Methodist eye hospital attends to over 100 patients a day, culminating in 20,000-32,000 new people being treated annually and 9,000 follow-ups returning to the medical center.

“A cataract removal operation costs US $90 for everything, including accommodation for one day and post-op medication, and about 50-55% of our patients are able to pay,” Kutubu-Kosia said. “We are a faith-based facility, and therefore we also treat those who are unable to pay. Children are treated for free under a project run in conjunction with the Baptist Church.”

The Lowell and Ruth Gess Eye Hospital is a beacon of hope for restoring sight not only for people in Sierra Leone but also neighboring countries. Kutubu-Kosia said that 50% of their cataract patients are from Guinea and Liberia.

Within the same mission center lies Kissy General United Methodist Hospital, which has played a pivotal role in providing healthcare in Freetown for almost half a century.

Established in 1980, the 140-bed facility was initially a maternity hospital but later expanded to provide other services to about 23,000 people in its catchment area.

“The hospital made a name for itself by providing the best services possible. We are preferred because we are cheaper, offer excellent services, and the patients feel at home due to their cordial relationship with nurses and other staff,” said administrator Arthur Battison-Nicol.

The United Methodist healthcare center conducts outreaches in outlying communities.

The center’s Friends Unit has contributed greatly to reducing stigma associated with HIV and AIDS and ensuring compliance for those on antiretroviral therapy.

Matron Adama Kamara said the unit was friendly and ensured privacy for patients seeking counseling, testing, treatment or collecting their medication.

“We open as early as 7 a.m. for patients to get their antiretroviral medication and go about their daily routines. That ensures they do not meet other patients as they leave before other departments open,” she said. “This has proven to be very effective, and our patients like the arrangement.”

The maternity wing remains a central part of the general hospital.

“We recently delivered twins — one presented in a breech position while the other was cephalic, and we managed to deliver them safely. They were so beautiful,” Kamara said.

Hypertension, diabetes, malaria, hepatitis, tuberculosis, anemia, typhoid and HIV make up the bulk of patients treated at the hospital.

Battison-Nicol attributed the high number of tuberculosis cases to poor living conditions.

“The disease is caused by poverty,” he said. “You may find five to six people living in one room with poor ventilation and inadequate food.”

The United Methodist hospital has received support from the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, which installed a solar system enabling the health center to run for about 16 hours daily on energy from the sun.

The solar system was a timely intervention, as costs of power from the national grid were exorbitant and the hospital couldn’t afford to pay, resulting in huge debts. The country is also experiencing regular power outages, and solar provided a lasting solution for the challenge.

“Global Ministries rescued the hospital from closure by paying off our power and rates debts,” Battison-Nicol said, adding that the mission agency also renovated the wards.

Battison-Nicol said that Kissy aspires to become a one-stop for all diagnoses and treatments and hopes to acquire functional machines for X-ray, ultrasound, universal anesthetist and electrocardiograph, which would boost the hospital’s patient numbers and income.

Kissy General Hospital attends to all types of medical conditions and also conducts surgeries. It has won national awards for its physiotherapy services.

“We are blessed to have a determined team and dedicated staff,” Battison-Nicol said.

Chikwanah is a UM News correspondent based in Harare, Zimbabwe.

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