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President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Wednesday handed over a United Nations (UN) Field Hospital to the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) to support emergency healthcare delivery to both military and civilians.
A field hospital is a temporary hospital or mobile medical unit that takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent facilities.
The 100-bed facility, near the Airforce Base in Accra, became operational in October 2020 to support the UN system-wide COVID-19 medical evacuation task force.
The UN ceased the operations of this hospital in June 2022, and in accordance with a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the government, the UN handed it over to Ghana, through the President at the event.
When fully set up, the hospital has essential medical equipment, intensive care units with two dialysis machines, a fully fitted laboratory, and two fully fitted Intensive Care Unit (ICU) ambulances.
It also has a laundry service, a generator power supply system, an oxygen plant, an incinerator and several other medical consumables and disposables for health care.
Speaking at the handing-over ceremony, President Akufo-Addo expressed happiness about the facility citing the important role good health played in the socio-economic development of the people.
He said the government made arrangements with the United Nations with the acquisition of this facility ultimately leading to its handing over to GAF, in line with its policy to ensure satisfactory access to healthcare for all.
This facility, he said, helped the country’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic and thus conveyed the country’s appreciation to the UN and the World Health Organisation (WHO) for situating the facility in Ghana.
“Your ability over the years to handle disasters and emergencies is commendable and I know that with the coming on board of this facility that aspect of your services will be enhanced even further,” he told GAF.
The WHO Country Representative, Dr Francis Kasolo, who handed over the facility to the government said the facility provided lifesaving care to over 100 patients from 25 different countries including Ghana and played a crucial role under the challenging and unforeseen contexts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The potential for this facility providing emergency medical services, critical ICU services, management of disasters and other emergencies including medical evacuation, training and capacity building for critical medical teams not only for Ghana but indeed for the sub-region”, he said.
The Presidential Advisor on health, Dr Anthony Nsiah-Asare, said the hospital had been handed over at a time when there was a need for such a purposefully built well-equipped and responsive emergency critical care facility.
He said the facility would support the several interventions of the country’s health system aimed at improving access to achieving Universal Health Coverage and project Ghana as a medical tourist centre in the sub-region
He expressed the hope that the facility would become a medical tourism centre when it is soon turned into a level-4 (upgraded) UN medical facility.
BY JONATHAN DONKOR & ABIGAIL ARTHUR
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