Management and staff of Saint Elizabeth Catholic Hospital at Hwidiem in the Ahafo Region have appealed for support to expand and equip the facility’s emergency unit to improve healthcare delivery and save more lives.
The appeal was made during a march through the principal streets of Hwidiem to officially launch this year’s Emergency Medicine Day celebration.
Speaking to Adom News, the Hospital Manager, Sister Georgina Quayson, described the current emergency ward as inadequate for a facility of its status.
According to her, the emergency unit has only an eight-bed capacity and lacks sufficient equipment to enable health professionals to effectively manage emergency cases.
“The emergency unit is not befitting the standard of the hospital because it has only an eight-bed capacity and does not have adequate equipment to help staff save lives as expected,” she said.
Sister Quayson explained that the hospital, which serves as a referral centre, urgently requires an expansion of the emergency ward as well as additional medical equipment to cater for the growing number of patients.
She therefore appealed to individuals, corporate organisations and non-governmental organisations to support the facility.
“We don’t want the hospital to record the slogan ‘No Bed Syndrome’, therefore all must see this call as urgent and important,” she stressed.
Also speaking to Adom News, the Nurse Manager, Gladys Bediako, and the In-Charge of the Emergency Unit, Nsiah Kwaku Stephen, said the facility receives a high number of emergency cases daily due to its reputation as one of the leading emergency care centres in the region.
According to them, the limited space at the emergency ward sometimes forces healthcare workers to treat patients on the floor.
They noted that the situation underscores the urgent need for expansion and improved equipment at the facility.
The health professionals further indicated that mining activities in the Ahafo Region, particularly in the Asutifi North and South districts, contribute significantly to the increasing number of emergency cases reported to the hospital on a daily basis.
