St. Francis Referral Hospital – Ifakara

St. Francis Hospital belongs to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ifakara and has fulfilled so far – according to a contract with the government – the assignment of a Designated District Hospital. It was responsible for the medical care of Kilombero and Ulanga Districts, in other words, for about 800.000 people living in an area approximately as large as Switzerland.

On 28/06/2010 the Minister of Health, Prof. David Mwakyusa, appointed St. Francis Hospital as Referral Hospital for the whole region of Morogoro. Now it is one of 9 Referral Hospitals in Tanzania. That means that all hospitals in the surrounding districts which are not equipped with the necessary personnel and gadgets and can therefore not treat certain patients properly transfer them to Ifakara. Its area of responsibility has been extended this way, and the responsible staff are faced with great new challenges. The key functions of the hospital are to provide health care services to the sick, supportive environment of learning and research in health. The hospital is used as a teaching platform for the newly established Medical School (St. Francis University College of Health and Allied Sciences), Tanzanian Training Centre for International Health (TTCIH) and Ifakara School of Nursing. It is also used as a research site for Ifakara Health Institute (IHI). The hospital accommodates medical students from various countries coming for elective clerkship. In addition the hospital is recognized as World Health Organization (WHO) collaborating district hospital.

The new entrance area

St. Francis Regional Referral Hospital – Ifakara