The much anticipated use of drone technology service for delivery of medical supplies in Ghana will begin next month, the Vice President, Alhaji Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has announced.
The service, he said, would deliver 149 key medicines and blood to critical parts of the country.
Alhaji Dr Bawumia said this in Accra on Monday, when he opened the 5th Scientific Conference of the African Health Economics and Policy Association (AfHEA).
“Once the programme starts, Ghana would become the largest medical drone delivery country in the world,” the Vice President added.
This is a step towards making health affordable and accessible to the people.
He said government was focused on digitising the health system, introduction of electronic medical records to strengthen the health sector.
According to him, advancement in technology had improved payment of claims to health service providers and that subscribers of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) could now use mobile phones to renew subscriptions.
In line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations’ vision on health, Alhaji Dr Bawumia told the participants that Ghana was working to ensure the provision of universal healthcare to the people by 2030.
He said government has ordered state of the art ambulances for distribution to all 275 constituencies in June this year to supplement healthcare delivery.
Alhaji Dr Bawumia commended AfHEA for conducting research on the health needs of the people, provision of data and evidence and said it had helped shaped policy decisions.
In December 2018, the Ministry of Health launched what was described as the largest and most advanced medical drone delivery network in the world.
Given the fact that developing countries such as Ghana face significant health deficits, issues of primary health care delivery require innovative means and practices.
Health deficits that are totally unacceptable include the fact that about 30 per cent of women die in labour due to excessive bleeding.
Issues of immediate intervention after a snake- bite are also deplorable.
This would have not been the case if Ghana had installed advanced technology to supply blood pints and other medical products to remote areas, where the need is imminent.
MALIK SULLEMANA
