The First Lady, Mrs Rebecca Akufo-Addo yesterday inaugurated a newly refurbished polyclinic and theatre at Ashiedu Keteke Sub Metro in Accra to help solve the health care needs of the people.
She also donated hospital equipments including medical, surgical and dental equipments to support the work of the Ussher Polyclinic and the James town maternity theatre.
Dubbed: “Ussher Hospital” the facility formerly known as Ussher Polyclinic was built around 1963 and the renovation was done by Rebecca Foundation with support from the Ghana Commercial Bank Limited (GCB).
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Mrs Akufo- Addo explained that the clinic had undergone significant transformation from a town clinic into a polyclinic thereby increasing its patients and human traffic, hence the renovation.
She said the upgrade formed part of the government’s vision to achieve comprehensive quality health care service delivery among the people of the country.
Mrs Akufo Addo noted that the facility would help improve the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) rate and increase the internal-generated fund which could go toward the provision of quality healthcare to the community.
Accessibility of quality health care, she said was essential to the developmental agenda of every nation and promised her foundation’s commitment to improving health service delivery to reduce maternal mortality in the country.
She lauded United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA) and GCB Bank Limited for their support and urged other private companies to assist her foundation in delivering good health service to the people.
“According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Health is inalienable and accessible to all, thus we have to emphasise on preventive healthcare,” she added.
Mr Mohammed Adjei Sowah, the Accra Metropolitan Chief Executive observed that the entire health facility leaked during the rainy season, and lacked adequate washrooms which risked the health of the staffs and patients.
The MCE thanked the first lady and the government for working assiduously in reshaping the facility to enhance health delivery.
He noted that Ussher Polyclinic at first could not boast of a theatre and all surgical emergencies were referred to Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and other higher institutions, stressing that with the new theater it would help manage cases such as ectopic gestation and typhoid perforations to save lives.
To ensure that these facilities are in excellent shape, Mr Sowah called for collaboration between the people and the health workers to ensure the equipments were used for its intended purpose to offer better services to the people.
The Managing Director of GCB Bank Limited, Mr Anselm Ray Sowah pledged his outfit’s commitment to working with the government to achieve its 2020 on health care delivery.
He mentioned that the people of Ashiedu-Keteke were vibrant and deserved to have quality health care to always be in sound mind to work for the development of the country.
The occasion was also used to outdoor the Odododiodioo constituency’s newly allocated ambulance under the “One constituency one ambulance initiative.
BY JOYCELINE NATALLY CUDJOE
