Bulawayo City Hospital. Image credit Tony Ward.

ZIMSEC O Level History Notes: Zimbabwe 1894-1969:Health in Rhodesia

  • Health standards for the workers were very poor
  • Workers in mines could easily be injured or get killed in accidents
  • Mine workers were not given adequate protective clothing resulting in many work-related injuries
  • Africans also contracted diseases and suffered from malnutrition
  • There no medical treatment for African workers
  • Health services were racially structured as white hospitals were better staffed and equipped than black ones
  • Black hospitals and clinics were understaffed, overcrowded and had limited drug supplies with rural clinics being the worst
  • Whites had better living conditions and suffered less from diseases
  • Maternal and infant mortality rates was very high for Africans
  • Life expectancy was pegged at 49.8 for African males whilst it was 66.9 years for white males
  • Africans relied mainly on hospitals built by missionaries for medical treatment

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