Public Relations Officer of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association, Joseph Krampah, has rejected claims that injured motor riders are mistreated or neglected at hospitals.
He said he is unaware of any situation where “okada” riders are refused treatment or subjected to unfair care, stressing that nurses are trained to save lives regardless of a patient’s background.
Speaking in an interview on Adom FM’s morning show Dwaso Nsem, he explained that emergency care is based on the severity of a patient’s condition, not on their occupation or identity.
“Our job is to save lives, so we cannot say that okada riders will come to the hospital and we will refuse to take care of them or amputate them. That is not what we do,” he said.
He noted that hospitals operate a triage system (emergency sorting process), which determines which patients require urgent attention.
“We have something called triage. When there is an accident or emergency, some cases are more serious than others, so we prioritise based on severity. I don’t know whether they arrive during that sorting process, and that may be why they feel ignored,” he explained.
According to him, patients may sometimes misunderstand the process and assume they are being neglected when medical staff are actually attending to more critical cases.
“Because they may not understand what we do, they think we are ignoring them, but that is not the case. We don’t stop everything to attend to one person unless it is life-threatening,” he said.
He further dismissed claims that nurses carry out amputations.
“We don’t amputate like that. Nurses don’t amputate. Doctors are the ones who perform surgeries. We work within clear guidelines and medical protocols,” he stated.
Mr Krampah added that healthcare delivery is guided by professional standards and laws, with regular training and supervision from district health management teams.
“We are trained professionals. There are systems in place, and we follow protocols. Cases are reviewed regularly to ensure proper care,” he said.
His comments come after concerns raised by motor riders that they are sometimes denied proper care when they are involved in accidents at health facilities.
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