MINISTRY OF HEALTH TAKES ITS TURN AT THE MEET-THE-PRESS SERIES
The Ministry of Health (MOH) will continue with ongoing hospital projects started by the previous government.
The Ministry has also given the assurance that the government will provide the necessary medical equipment and infrastructure, and retool health facilities for maternal and child health services so as to bridge the equity and access to health service gap in the country.
The Minister for Health, Hon Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, made these known when he took his turn at the Meet-the-Press series in Accra on Thursday to provide insight into how far the Ministry has made progress in providing good health services since he took office this year.
Hon. Agyeman-Manu disclosed that in the Central Region, Ten (10) Polyclinics were at various stages of completion and would be equipped, adding that, Biseae was 61%, Gomoa Dawurampong 64%, Biriwa 70%, Mankrong 65%, Bimpong Egya 64% while others were almost completed.
The Minister disclosed that both Cabinet and Parliamentary approval were been received to contract a loan worth EUR 22.3M through Ellips Projects S.A.S to finish the Bekwai district hospital.
In the Greater Accra Region, the Minister said five (5) Polyclinics were undergoing construction, while the first 4 of the 8 hospitals in Wa, Tepa, Nsawkaw and Madina municipal hospitals were scheduled for completion in April 2018.
He explained that the University of Ghana Medical Center would soon be in operation as phase I was yet to be completed with the fixing of medical equipment and other hospital items.
Among the new projects MOH was carrying out, according to the Minister, were the reconstruction of the Central Medical Store (CMS) and the construction of Greater Accra Regional Hospital Phase II.
Touching on disease detection and prevention, he said there were 52 digital radiographic systems for 48 hospitals nationwide to detect and control Tuberculosis (TB).
The Minister was happy that, MOH was able to develop and disseminate new Cholera Operating Procedures (SOPs) and also trained both heath and non-health workers which led to no new cholera outbreak form January this 2017 to date.
He added that the Ministry was able to contain Meningitis in the country, especially the affected regions of the Northern, Volta, Upper West, Upper East and other places.
Government, Mr Agyeman-Manu said, was reviving the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) by clearing all outstanding debts to service providers.
On expenditure, the Minister disclosed that the total financial commitment on government for all ongoing projects was at GH¢ 404,647,389.00 for the year and that a total of GH¢ 190,139,783.00 had already been disbursed.
In his closing remarks, Minister of Information, Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, pledged government’s commitment to providing good health care for Ghanaians, but urged Ghanaians to take good care themselves and observe the rules of hygiene for disease prevention.
Source: ISD (Aliyah Bayali & Priscilla Serwah Adjarkoh)