The Executive Director of Mulago National Referral Hospital, Byanyima Rose, has called for increased efforts to promote women into senior medical roles, despite the growing number of female health workers at the facility.
Byanyima noted that women form a large part of the hospital’s workforce, especially in the nursing profession. According to hospital records, 821 female staff members are currently working at Mulago, reflecting the important contribution women make to healthcare service delivery.
However, she acknowledged that women remain underrepresented in top medical positions.
“At the senior consultant level, we have only three women compared to 14 men, and among consultants we have eight women against 13 male consultants,” she said.
Byanyima explained that this gap is partly due to historical trends where fewer girls pursued science subjects, limiting the number of women entering specialized medical careers. She expressed optimism that the situation may change in the future as more girls continue to study science.
Despite the imbalance in senior clinical roles, women are increasingly taking up leadership positions within the hospital. Byanyima revealed that seven out of the fifteen members of Mulago’s top management are women, while six out of twelve board members are female.
She emphasized that duties and responsibilities at the hospital are assigned based on skills and competence rather than gender, adding that female staff have demonstrated resilience and dedication in delivering healthcare services.
Byanyima also highlighted Mulago’s achievements in improving quality standards, noting that the hospital has obtained ISO certification in three key areas—ISO 9001 for quality management systems, ISO 14001 for environmental management systems, and ISO 45001 for occupational health and safety.
According to the hospital leadership, Mulago is the first government hospital in Uganda to achieve such certifications, a milestone aimed at strengthening service delivery and setting a benchmark for other public health facilities.
She further noted that many female health workers, particularly nurses, have upgraded their academic qualifications in recent years. While nursing training previously ended at diploma level, many have now obtained bachelor’s degrees and master’s qualifications, with others pursuing further specialization.
However, she pointed out that some of these nurses are facing challenges in obtaining certification and promotions because of an ongoing debate over whether graduates should undergo internship before registration by professional councils.
“We believe this issue should be resolved soon so that those who have completed their degrees can be registered and promoted,” she said.
Byanyima also highlighted challenges facing the hospital, including staff shortages, which have limited the full operationalization of some departments. She called for increased recruitment of health workers to help expand services.
She also appealed for the completion of a staff housing project, which is expected to accommodate an additional 150 health workers once finalized.
In addition, Byanyima encouraged women working at the hospital to think big and embrace innovation, noting that their ideas and resilience can help improve service delivery within the institution.
She also commended government initiatives supporting the education of the girl child, saying such efforts will eventually lead to more women taking leadership roles in national institutions.
“With continued support, we believe we shall keep improving service delivery at Mulago and across the country,” she said.