Quality Healthcare Delivery: KATH To Launch Endowment Fund

The inability of patients to pay for their medical bills and other essential services rendered to them at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) continuous to pose a huge financial burden on the referral facility. The situation coupled with huge investment gaps in infrastructure and equipment, is having a toll on the hospital's operations.

According to management, it needs a total sum of 70 million Ghana cedis to retool and replace equipment especially those at the accident and emergency center, and other units and departments of the hospital which are worn out.

Management also revealed that an amount of 50 million Ghana cedis is also needed to expand infrastructure to enable the hospital improve on essential services like mental health and diabetes treatment.

Speaking at a press conference ahead of the launching the hospital's endowment fund, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Dr. Oheneba Owusu-Danso, said the setting up of the fund is part of innovative ways management adopted to raise funds to augment government's efforts in quality healthcare delivery.

“One component of the endowment fund in terms of its utilization is the fact that as a hospital, we have huge unpaid bills which work negatively against our recouping of investment for just clinical services. We are buying medicines and consumable items for which we use to carry out clinical services.”

“Unfortunately, given the status of our economy in certain areas, some clients are unable to foot their bills. All these things are compiled and sometimes waved. Some even give undertaken for these payments to be made in installments, but we never see them again. We think that as part of this, the endowment fund will assist some of these underprivileged people to settle some of their bills. Just so that at the worse stage, Komfo Anokye should be able to recoup its investment at the highest minimum,” he explained.

KATH Endowment Fund launch

An 11-member Board of Trustees has been constituted to manage the Endowment Fund which is scheduled to be launched at 5:30 pm on Friday, 30th November, 2018 at the Golden Bean Hotel in Kumasi.

Dr. Owusu-Danso explained that the trustees will manage the endowment fund and oversee how monies from the fund are disbursed without the control of the Board and Management of the hospital.

He indicated that the monies needed to retool and expand facilities at the hospital do not include the 40-year old maternity and children block which is currently being funded by the government to ensure its completion.

The KATH CEO called on individuals, corporate bodies and the general public to be at the launch to donate cash to the endowment fund to enable management improve on quality healthcare delivery at the facility.

Source: citinewsroom.com | Ghana