Govt shuts down unregistered health facilities

Rumbidzayi Zinyuke-Senior Reporter

The Health Professions Authority of Zimbabwe (HPA) shut down 22 unregistered health facilities in 2023 in a move to combat the rise of unlicensed medical practices to ensure patient safety and uphold professional standards within the healthcare sector.

The facilities were discovered by the authority during investigations which revealed that some of the facilities had not renewed their licenses while others were operating without relevant statutory licensing.

Speaking during the Authority’s annual congress, secretary General Mrs Clotilda Chimbwanda said there had been a rise in unscrupulous health workers who were opening facilities unlawfully. 

 “We have come across so many bogus practices and practitioners as we do our inspections. In one case a dental student who dropped out of dental school opened a practice and was practicing there. We have had cases where institutions are being run by nurse aides and the practitioners on the ground are nowhere to be found. In others, we have people who did not finish their medical degree but went and started practising.