Ownership of West Gonja Hospital should be declared public, dissolve board — Damongo youth group

A youth group calling itself Concerned Citizens of Damongo have demanded that ownership of the West Gonja Hospital situated in Damongo in the West Gonja Municipality of the Savannah Region be declared public to revert a possible clash between natives of the town and the Damongo Catholic Diocese.

They made this demand at a press conference addressed by Lead Convener, Rev. Samuel Mahama Dinkeri on Wednesday, April 13, 2022.

According to them, they have intercepted a letter written by the Administrator of the Hospital seeking to change the name of the Hospital to St. Anne's Hospital which has sent tongues wagging in the Damongo township.

They noted that documents available to them indicates that the said health facility is a state-owned entity and therefore they will resist any attempt to have the name of the Hospital changed.

They also bemoaned that health care delivery is seriously been affected due to the persistent unrest and conflict between staff and management of the Hospital resulting in the death patients.

"If it is not nurses strike, then it is about the resignation of doctors or power struggle among management. These issues which have not been managed well have resulted in deaths".

The youth group also demanded among others that the current board of the hospital be dissolved and reconstituted to reflect a true and proper representation of the various stakeholders.

Find the full press statement below:

STATEMENT BY CONCERNED CITIZENS OF DAMONGO ON THE STATE OF THE WEST GONJA HOSPITAL! 13th April, 2022.

Ladies and gentlemen of the press, thank you very much for honoring our invitation. It is our hope that through your esteemed medium our voice would go far. We are here to express our disappointment, our frustration and our grave concern about the worrying state of our beloved West Gonja Hospital!

A cursory look at the media for the past few years would reveal that the West Gonja Hospital has consistently been in the news for the wrong reasons. If it is not about nurses strike, then it is about the resignation of doctors or power struggle among management. These issues which have not been managed well have resulted in deaths. Information available indicates that even though this hospital has become a referral hospital for some of the districts in the Savannah Region, yet the number of people coming to seek healthcare in the hospital has reduced by 50%. Meanwhile some years back, the West Gonja Hospital was one of the best performing hospital in Northern Ghana, attracting clients from the length and breadth of this country.

Thomas Carlyl once said that “He who has health, has hope; and he who has hope, has everything”. We all know that the healthcare delivery of a hospital is the sole concern of the owners and managers of every hospital. Unfortunately, we have observed with pain the following about the West Gonja Hospital in Damongo:

1.The general healthcare delivery at the hospital is currently very poor.

2. Ineffectiveness of National Health Insurance; the hospital seems to have returned to the cash and carry system because clients pay for virtually all the services at the hospital.

3. Discrimination among clients who access healthcare from the hospital, particularly on ethnic Grounds.

4. Though, about half of the doctors in Savannah Region are concentrated in the West Gonja Hospital in Damongo alone, there is no corresponding output from them due to reasons best known to managers of the hospital.

5. Constant unrest and conflicts among the workers and managers of the hospital which has persisted for several years.

As concerned citizens of Damongo who have been hugely affected by this poor and abysmal state of our cherished West Gonja Hospital, we are saying enough is enough! We are therefore humbly demanding the following from His Royal Majesty Jira Yagbonwura Professor Tuntumba Boresa Jakpa I and the government:

I. That the ownership of the hospital be declared to the public once and for all

II. That the name West Gonja Hospital, Damongo should not be changed for any reason!

III. That current board of the hospital be dissolved and reconstituted to reflect a true and proper representation of the various stakeholders.

IV. That the current management of the hospital have failed in their categorical imperative to manage the hospital well and therefore should be replaced

V. That we want at least 50% of the Human resource be replaced with natives who hold equal qualifications.

We want to commend His Royal Majesty for his efforts so far in this matter and it is our hope that it would be resolved immediately.

We want to also call on all well-meaning Kejakpanana all over the globe who are capable of helping in any way to resolve this problem to kindly do so now!

May the Lord Almighty God who is the only true judge bless us all.

Thank you!

1. Rev. Samuel Mahama Dinkeri (Lead Covener) ……………………………………………

2. Mr. Adam Mashood (Covener)

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