A four-million dollar 70-bed capacity Mother and Child Centre is being constructed at the Maamobi General Hospital, in the Ayawaso Municipality, to enhance quality health care delivery.
The project, which is being funded by a Jamaican Musician, Nii Roy Gramps Morgan, is aimed at improving the health status of mothers and children, to reduce maternal and infant mortality.
The facility to be known as the Cleveland A. Morgan Mother and Child Centre, is being named after the father of Mr Gramps Morgan.
Speaking at a programme to sensitise staff, clients and members of the community on Thursday, the Medical Superintendent of the hospital, Dr. Dorcas Anfu Okine, said the health facility was functioning below capacity, due to limited infrastructure.
She said though the hospital served as the biggest facility among the three government health institutions in the Ayawaso municipality and receives referrals from the adjoining communities, and its status changed from polyclinic to a general hospital, its infrastructure had not seen any major change.
“The hospital continues to function in the limited structure, thereby making it difficult for health professionals to deliver quality care to our ever increasing clients,” Dr. Okine said.
She said it would also ensure that health care workers and clients, especially, mothers and children, no longer compete for limited space.
Former President, Jerry John Rawlings, who was the guest of honour at the event, asked the hospital authorities to ensure that nothing hindered the completion of the facility, and to ensure that the right processes were gone through.
He said there were people in the country who could help the country by putting up social amenities, but were using their resources in other areas that did not benefit the people.
Former President Rawlings stated that “so if we have someone from another country who has decided to help us, we need to give him all the support that he need.”
The former President asked health experts to work hard and raise the image of their profession.
According to him, some health workers were putting their professionals into disrepute, saying that people were dying from illness that should not kill them.
Former President Rawlings said the issue of poor sanitation in the country should be a great challenge to the government and citizenry, and called for attitudinal change to improve the sanitation conditions in the country.
The Project Ambassador, Mr Gramps Morgan, promised to procure and fix an elevator for the facility because “expectant mothers cannot be made to climb stairs to deliver, but rather they need to be in a comfortable position to deliver.”
He urged Ghanaians to support the project and ensure it was completed on time
BY JEMIMA ESINAM KUATSINU
