By
Godfred A. Polkuu, GNA
Bolgatanga, Nov. 9,
GNA – The Future for Africa (F4A), a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) in
Bolgatanga, has presented medical equipment to the Paediatric Unit of the Upper
East Regional hospital to assist in healthcare delivery at the unit.
The items included
five digital Blood Pressure (BP) apparatus machines, two pulse oximetres, 26
pieces of thermometers, one otoscope, packs of spatulas, 10 pieces of masks
with filters, surgical gloves and some drugs.
The NGO, as part of
its work to create a future of hope for children in Northern Ghana, earlier
this year, settled the medical bills of 15 needy children whose parents
absconded after they had received medical care at the facility. This was
because some had no valid National Health Insurance cards, while others were
not registered onto the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
The Organization
also contributed an amount of GH¢2,000.00 as seed capital during the launch of
the hospital’s “Needy Child Fund,” instituted to help needy children whose
parents or caretakers could not settle their medical bills in the hospital
after treatment or those who needed further management in other facilities.
In an interview with
the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at the Paediatric Unit after a brief ceremony, Mr
Mansur Acheb Delwin Bawa, the Executive Director of F4A said the NGO usually
supported the facility to deliver quality health services by linking it with
foreign national volunteers with diverse expertise in health.
“One of our aims is not
only to have people come here and work to help reduce the number of patients
that are here, and to give quality health care, but to also identify the
challenges of the various wards.”
He said one of their
volunteers from Spain, who was currently rendering service at the Unit,
observed that the Unit lacked some basic medical equipment to help in service
delivery, “So we decided to look into it to find a temporal solution to the
problem for improved health services.”
Mr Bawa observed
that most of the wards in the hospital were full, and said “We are looking at
getting into communities in the Region to do more health outreach programmes to
help reduce the pressure here. Those that we cannot handle we will refer them
and follow up to see the results.”
Mr Mark Anthony
Azongo, the Head of the Paediatric Unit of the hospital who received the items,
expressed gratitude to F4A and continuous support to the Unit over the years,
and invited other NGOs across the Region and beyond to support the Unit deliver
on its mandate.
When the GNA engaged
Dr Marta Ruiz Zarzuela a Volunteer Doctor from Spain working at the Unit to
pick her experience and observation in the hospital, she said in spite of the
poor conditions under which staff worked coupled with lack of basic medical
equipment for service delivery, staff of the hospital, especially the
Paediatric ward were passionate about their work, and commended them for their
efforts.
GNA
