Residents of Tolon in the Northern region have appealed to the government to take steps to facilitate the operations of the newly built district hospital.
Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia commissioned the state-of-the-art hospital last year November when he toured the Northern region in the run-up to the general elections but to date, the edifice is still not operational.
According to the residents, health is wealth therefore the opening of the hospital to the general public will go a long way to provide quality healthcare for them.
The 60-bed ultra-modern hospital for the Tolon District is one of the six medical facilities that began three years ago. The Hospital has various departments including, Out-Patient and Emergency Department, Inpatient Wards for males and females, pediatrics and Obstetrics and Gynecology. Others are the Maternity and Child Health, Surgery, Intensive Care Unit, Physiotherapy, Pharmacy and Diagnostic Services including; X-ray, Laboratory, and ultrasound, and a Mortuary.
To ensure that the Hospital functions without any major obstacles, the full complement of Electro-mechanical systems and medical equipment were provided. The hospital is equipped with modern medical equipment, key among them being X- Ray Machines, Ultrasound, Surgical Equipment, Medical Gases and Patient Monitors. However, almost a year after the commissioning, the hospital is not in use. Expressing their concerns to GBCNEWS at Tolon, the residents called on the government to expedite action towards the opening of the hospital to serve the health needs of the people.
The District Chief Executive for Tolon, Barkisu Yakubu, said steps are being taken to get all the necessary and needed logistics and human resource for the smooth take-off of the operations of the hospital. She said one challenge facing the area is water supply and therefore management is trying hard to get sustainable water supply for the hospital when it finally takes off. She also called on development partners to come to the aid of the hospital
The Paramount Chief of Tolon Traditional area, Tolon Naa, Major (rtd) Sulemana Abubakari acknowledged concerns raised by the residents. He said the President and the Ministry of Health have promised that all protocols delaying the operation of the hospital will duly be addressed.
By Joyce Kantam Kolamong
