By Hannah Dadzie
Minister of Health, Dr Bernard Okoe Boye, has begun a four-day working visit to the Ashanti Region.
As part of the tour, he will visit regional and district health facilities in the Ashanti Region, inspect all yet-to-be completed projects, interact with staff, and gain first-hand information on the health sector in the region for policy direction.
Dr. Okoe Boye’s first port of call was with the Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei-Mensah. Upon welcoming the Minister, Mr Osei-Mensah expressed appreciation for Dr Okoe Boye’s efforts to improve health care delivery in the country.
The Regional Minister took Dr. Okoe Boye through some yet-to-be completed health facilities. He further stated some challenges confronting health care delivery in the region. These include the non-availability health facilities in some deprived areas, lack of essential health care equipment.
Dr. Okoye Boye inspected the 250-bed capacity new Ashanti Regional Hospital situated at Sewua in the Bosomtwe District. The modern health edifice is ready to be operationalized with physical construction completed.
The Ashanti Regional Hospital promises to be a state-of-the-art facility with an array of medical amenities. It is equipped with gynaecology wards, an intensive care unit, operation theatres, delivery suites, a sterilisation department, and a medical gas plant capable of producing essential medical gases.
“We are giving ourselves timeline,by September 2024, this facility will be ready to be commissioned,” he stated.
The Health Minister also visited the Bekwai Municipal Hospital, reaffirming the government’s commitment to improving healthcare services and infrastructure across the region.
The Medical Superintendent of the facility, Dr. Med. Ebenezer Osei Akoto, who welcomed the minister, expressed his appreciation for the visit. He outlined some challenges they encounter at the facility, including low power supply and frequent pipeline bursting.
The Minister and his delegation interacted with the staff of Bekwai Municipal Hospital to discuss some of their challenges.
Dr. Okoe Boye assured staff of the Bekwai Municipal Hospital that their concerns would be addressed by the management of the ministry. He therefore urged them to do what is expected of them to improve healthcare delivery in the country.