Don’t Move ‘Nuisance Health Workers’ From Wa Regional Hospital To New Edifice

Tahiru Lukman

What is supposed to have been serving as a referral facility in the Upper West Region as Wa Regional Hospital cannot be described as a decent health facility. A lot of people have remained silent with bitter experiences and with the fear to speak up. We cannot continue to remain mute; for the ethical standard and best practices is lost from the Wa Regional Hospital.

In entering into the facility, one will be welcome by unruly car park attendants; that do make ethnocentric comments and insult elders with little issues regarding parking charges. Moving to the laboratory is another hell of experience. The units look very dirty, broken louver blades; tore wires masks and appear unfits for any serious laboratory analysis. The process in obtaining blood is another bitter experience that one will wish never to need blood for transfusions.

It even appears to be more disgusting as the X- ray department never function effectively. The rather adopt ‘a go and come strategy’ to cover the ill conducts. Another worrying trend is the entrepreneurial skill of the nurses as they will find drugs to sell to patients and such drugs will never be found in the pharmacy. The big question is; if such drugs are not covered with NHIS, does the nurse have rights to trade drugs in the facility?

In view of sanitation, one will be welcome go to the maternity with broken down bins or overflowing rubbish in bins that are left to be cleared. The incinerator is broken down and the big question is; how the facility managed hazardous waste? The Mortuary is yet another place that is also not dignifying.

The innovation to barricade the walk work way turns out to be slur in management competence. They have used irons rots with nets that have become a death trap for workers, patients and relatives.

It is a known secret that, maternal fatalities have been on the rise; it is also a glaring fact that, nurses and health workers even with the facilities resort to Nadowli/ Kaleo District Hospital and ST. Josepth Hospital in Jirapa for caregiving, especially for deliveries. Most CHPS in the Wa Municipality have earned high reputation in terms of Maternal Health Service in particular than our regional hospital that is not fit to render veterinary service.

In my view, it is good news that a new edify to serve as proper referral facilities is been constructed. I make a passionate appeal to Hon. Dr Hafiz Bin Saliah the Upper West Regional Minister and the capons in health care delivery in the Upper West Region NOT to consider sending a single health worker or anybody that is directly associated with the failing regional hospital to the New Facility.

However, while we wait and engaged contractors to address the structural defects of the new edifices. Answers to the following questions need to be addressed before the Wa Regional hospital that should be serving as care home rather posing high risk in view of poor quality health care.

Also, the poor relations of the Facility inter- community relation, is yet another aspect that needs to be considered and examine critically.

Until immediate action is taken to addressing the poor quality service delivery which is serving as disincentive for many to repose confidence in the facility; it will continue to deteriorate. I must conclude that, the rot in the facility is beyond the recent leadership and financial mismanagement crises the facility is experiencing. A holistic probe into the facility will be the only way out.

Name: Tahiru Lukman
Tel: 0209154057
Email: [email protected]

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