Founded as a dispensary in 1911, by the White Sisters of our Lady of Africa, Virika Hospital gradually developed from those humble beginnings. In 1962 the hospital was handed over to the Medical Mission Sisters who expanded the facilities and established the Virika School of Nursing. The hospital was handed over to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Portal in 1975. The diocese entrusted the management of the institution to the religious congregation of the Sisters of the Daughters of Saint Thereza of the Child Jesus. In February 1994, Virika hospital suffered major earthquake damage affecting 95 percent of the buildings. Repairs to the damage lasted from 1995 until 2000.[6]
Hospital operations
As of December 2019, the hospital's bed capacity was 207. At that time, Holy Family Virika Hospital attended to 21,053 outpatients annually, on average. There were 8,369 inpatient admissions annually, on average, with a bed occupancy ratio of 37 percent. The hospital had 1,840 annual maternal deliveries, on average, with a caesarian section rate of 34.6 percent. In 2019, patient user-fees accounted for approximately 59.1 percent of total hospital annual income, on average.[5]
^ abUganda Catholic Medical Bureau (9 December 2019). "About Holy Family Virika Hospital". Nsambya, Kampala, Uganda: Uganda Catholic Medical Bureau. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
.jpg)
