Kigeme Diocese

Kigeme Diocese

Health

Background and Description

The history of  Kigeme Hospital is very close to the one of the Anglican Church of Rwanda, Kigeme Diocese.

It is in 1920 that Stanley Smith’s and Sharp’s families entered in Uganda where they started Kampala and Kabale gospel missions. They started also finding out how to settle in Rwanda and they found place in Shyira, Gahini and Kigeme. In 1934 Geoffrey Holmes and his wife Ernestine reached in Kigeme and started basic medical care in the population of Kigeme, dealing with leprosy especially. The Hospital founded indeed in 1942, by the Gospel missionaries, currently it is a Hospital licensed and supported by Rwandan Government.

Telephone:
+250788823228

Email:
kigeme.hospital@moh.gov.rw

Twitter:
@Kigemehospital

​​​​​​CATCHMENT AREA 

Located in the Southern Province of Rwanda, Nyamagabe District, at 18 km from Nyungwe National Park near the main road to Republic Democratic of Congo, Kigeme Hospital covers 8 sectors and serving 213,837 inhabitants. Kigeme is one of the two hospitals located in Nyamagabe District.

Kigeme District Hospital is in charge of supervising 10 Health Centers:

  • Cyanika Health Center in Cyanika Sector.
  • Nyamagabe Health center in GASAKA Sector.
  • Kigeme Health Center in GASAKA Sector.
  • Ngara Health center in MBAZI Sector.
  • Kitabi Health center in KITABI Sector.
  • Mbuga Health Center in TARE Sector.
  • Shaba Health center in KITABI Sector.
  • Nyarusiza Health Center in KAMEGERI Sector.
  • Uwinkingi Health center in UWINKINGI Sector.
  • Kibirizi Health Center in Kibirizi Sector

In addition to these Health Centers there are also the Dispensary of Nyamagabe Prison, Kigeme refugee Camp, Nyamagabe Rehabilitation Center in Gatare sector and 16 Health Posts. Among the 213,837 inhabitants of Kigeme Hospital catchment area, the population from Kitabi, Shaba, Ngara and Nyarusiza Health Centers walk about 20 km to reach at Kigeme Hospital and in the hilly and mountainous region.

ADMINISTRATION OF KIGEME HOSPITAL

Kigeme District Hospital is owned by the Anglican Church of Rwanda, Kigeme Diocese, supported by Rwandan Government through the convention signed between the Government of Rwanda and nongovernmental organizations owning health facilities.

The administration hierarchy is as follows:

  • Ministry Health
  • Nyamagabe District
  • The Health committee.
  • Hospital management committee
  • The administrative meeting.
  • The meeting of Kigeme Hospital staff.

DEPARTMENTS OF KIGEME HOSPITAL

Kigeme Hospital has various departments grouped under three units chaired by Directors: Nurses and Midwifery Unit; Medical, Allied and Health Sciences Services Unity; Administration and Finance Unit.

NURSES AND MIDWIFERY UNIT

  • Out Patients Department
  • Internal Medicine
  • Pediatrics
  • Maternity
  • Neonatology
  • Surgery
  • ARV
  • IOSC
  • Emergency unit
  • Pharmacy
  • Non Communicable Diseases

​​​​​​​MEDICAL, ALLIED AND HEALTH SCIENCES SERVICES UNIT

  • Nutrition  rehabilitation services
  • Ophthalmology
  • Dentistry
  • Physiotherapy
  • Mental Health
  • Laboratory
  • Medical Imaging
  • Hygiene and Sanitation
  • Biomedical Equipment Maintainance services
  •  Infrastructure

​​​​​​​ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE UNIT

Director General + Secretariat

Administration and Finance (Administration, Accountancy, Human Resources, Public Relations, customer care, Procurement, logistics, billing and Recovery)

  • Planner, Monitoring and Evaluation
  • Quality improvement
  • Internal Auditor
  • Community Health
  • Social services
  • Information Technology
  • Infrastructure Maintenance
  • Spiritual Services

VISION 

The vision of Kigeme District Hospital is to be a model health care provider through preventive, curative and promotional health services.

​​​​​​​MISSION 

To provide quality healthcare services centered on community.

​​​​​​​CORE VALUES 

  • Compassion
  • Solidarity
  • Accountability

MOTTO 

We work for the Lord who comforts and heals

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

EARLY HOSTORY OF KIGEME DISTRICT HOSPITAL

THE EARLY HISTORY OF KIGEME HOSPITAL

Mostly taken from three Published Books (at the moment not obtainable).  Extracts have been scanned and printed by the new generation from the missionaries for Kigeme Hospital Public Relations Office.

Here are some of the relevant points from each:

  1. The Road to Revival by Dr Algie Stanley Smith published probably in 1946

Dr Stanley Smith and Dr Sharpe were the two first ‘Pioneer’ Ruanda Missionaries from Kabale in Uganda. From this book we can pick up the following points about Kigeme:

  • In late 1930: the Sharpes, by then established at Gahini, together with others decided that they should expand from Gahini, first towards the north-west (Shyira), and then to the south-west of Rwanda beyond Astrida (Butare).  Journeying west towards the huge forest and the Congo, they reached Kigeme and marked out an ideal plot there, in a place where a patch of the original forest still stood – its lowest outreach.
  • In 1932: permission was eventually granted and Captain Geoffrey Holmes started to build a Mission Station at Kigeme.  Owing to lack of funds from England the work had to be self-financed out of the Missionaries’ own salaries.
  • The Missionaries were joined by an outstanding young man, Nikodemo Gatozi, from Gahini who felt called to work at Kigeme, preaching the Gospel, 200 miles away from his home in Gahini.
  • In 1933: the first doctor came to work at Kigeme, Dr Stanley-Smith himself, and as it says on p. 49 of his book, they ‘immediately started full medical work’.   
  • There is mention of a ‘hospital’ at Kigeme in 1932, being visited by the wife of a local Chief for treatment.
  • In 1934: all Ruanda Mission Medical doctors were granted by the Government the status of ‘Medecin Agree’.
  • Turning to page 77, it seems possible, but not written out in any detail, that the Hospital was being built over time from 1933 onwards and was completed  (‘finishing touches’ applied, it says), by 1938.   
  1. A Grain of Mustard Seed by Lindesay Guillebaud published in 1960

We can highlight the following points:

  • From p. 40 – Only Shyira was to be financed from England, work at Kigeme coming from the Missionaries own salaries.  Geoffrey Holmes started the work at Kigeme (as above)
  • In 1933: Dr Stanley-Smith came to Kigeme to replace the Holmes and started medical work there – confirming what Dr Stanley-Smith wrote above.
  1. Breath of Life by Patricia St John published in 1970

From her book the following dates are confirmed:-

  • June 1931: permission granted for a Mission Station to be built at Kigeme.
  • Christmas 1931 – hundreds gathering at Kigeme to hear the Gospel.
  • 1932.  Bert Jackson worked at Kigeme.
  • In 1932 Geoffrey Holmes writes home describing Kigeme as ‘very wet’!
  • 1933 Kigeme Hospital founded – see page 91.  ‘By 1933 the foundation stones of the 3rd Mission Hospital in Rwanda were laid, (the other two being Gahini, and then more recently, Shyira)
  • The same year, 1933, the Stanley-Smiths took over from Geoffrey Holmes at Kigeme – he being the first doctor to work there full-time.  (p 92)
  • In 1937 Dr Hindley came to Kigeme to take over the medical work there staying for about 2 years before moving to Shyira.  (Pat Hindley was their first daughter.  Her younger sister Sue was born at Kigeme.

(Comment- Dr Jeffrey who provided the scanned pages of the three books   1968. He was married at Kigeme in 1970, according to his testimony).

NAMES OF DOCTORS WHO HAVE WORKED IN KIGEME HOSPITAL 1932 -1981

(Information provided by The Rt Revd Jonathan Ruhumuliza from Ruanda Notes – Ruanda Mission-CMS UK.)

  1. Dr & Mrs Algie Stanley Smith End of 1932- end of 1936
  2. Dr Joe Church July 1933- December 1933 temporary
  3. Dr & Mrs Godefrey Talbot Hindley 1937- July 1938
  4. Dr Theodore S. Goodchild July 1938 – August 1941
  5. Dr Algie Stanley Smith February 1939 – May 1939 Temporary
  6. Dr Algie Stanley Smith September 1942 – October 1944
  7. November 1945-1948 No Medical Doctor (hospital almost closed) Dr Joan Brazier (The wife of Archdeacon James/Jim Brazier) coming sometimes to help.
  8. Miss Beatrice Louis – Nurse from November 1946-1947
  9. Miss Doris Lanham – Nurse from 1948-1949
  10. Dr Ken & Mrs Wendy Moynagh from May 1949 -April 1953
  11. Dr Pierre & Mrs Andrea Babel from May 1953-December 1955 from Geneva- Switzerland
  12. Dr Alan and Mrs Barbara Bapty from January 1956 – March1957 Temporary
  13. Dr Pierre and Mrs Andrea Babel (back) from April 1957- 1960
  14. Dr John Henderson from 1961 – June 1962 temporary
  15. Dr & Mrs John Church July 1962 – June 1963 Temporary
  16. Dr John Henderson from July 1963 – March 1964 Temporary
  17. Dr Geoffrey Stanley Smith (Son of Dr Algie Stanley Smith) April 1964 – July 1964
  18. (August 1964 – April 1965, there was no doctor)
  19. Dr & Mrs Derrick from May 1965- April 1972
  20. Dr Jeffrey & Mrs Pat Newth November 1968 -1975
  21. Dr John & Mrs Sheila Henderson May 1972 – July 1977
  22. Dr Lutz & Mrs Nina Grühl from August 1977 -1981
  • A quotation from, Dr.med.Lutz Gruhl,  now a German Plastic Surgeon General Surgeon and General Pactioner as the last missionary Kigeme Hospital Director:

 « ….about the kigeme history, I may help you over a certain period i.e the years I have worked there from 1977-1982, sure I had gathered informations about kigeme history from the missionaries from England.

 As far as I know Kigeme Hospital was founded in 1928 by english missionaries coming to Rwanda walking from Kampala in Uganda trying to extend the protestant idea in this country, by then in the strong hands of the white fathers (Péres blancs) in Kabgayi. 

As you see, I may have quite a lot to tell and will do so in future, as I have a lot of work to do. Let me so send once in a while different chapters of my memories on Kigeme…. »

NAMES OF HOSPITAL DIRECTORS WHO LEAD KIGEME HOSPITAL 1981-2022

  1. Dr RUKUNDO Sosthene
  2. Dr BUTSURE Anastase
  3. Dr UHORANINGOGA Cassien
  4. Dr HAKIZIMANA Leandre
  5. Dr TWAGIRAMUNGU Edison
  6. Dr NKULIKIYUMUKIZA Sixbert
  7. Dr MURAYIRE Emmanuel, MEDIHOP a.i
  8. Dr MUNEZERO Eric
  9. Dr NZABONIMANA Ephraim

 

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