Fourth Catholic Hospital for C/R

Apam, Feb. 13, GNA - The fourth Catholic Hospital to be established in the Central Region will start operation before the end of the year at Mankessim in the Mfantseman District.

The other ones are at Assin Foso, Breman Asikuma and Apam. The multi-billion cedi hospital comprises a Vesico Vaginal Fistula (VVF) Unit and a Maternal Child Health Unit.

The VVF Unit, the first of its kind in the country, would take care of complication of prolonged labour, which results in the creation of a hole between the vagina and the bladder resulting in uncontrolled discharge of urine.

His Eminence Peter Cardinal Appiah Turkson, Archbishop of Cape Coast, announced this at a meeting with the management and the staff of the Apam Catholic Mission Hospital during a pastoral visit to the Apam Parish, on Saturday.

The meeting was to afford the Cardinal the opportunity to know problems facing the hospital and the staff. He said equipment for the new hospital was being installed and stated that the Archdiocese was sponsoring the training of some Doctors in the country's medical schools to offset the shortage of personnel at Catholic hospitals in the region.

Cardinal Appiah-Turkson expressed concern about the rate nurses were living the hospital to seek greener pastures elsewhere and gave the assurance that everything possible would be done to address their grievances.

He suggested to the management of hospitals of the Church in the region to make the incentive packages for their workers uniform so that no institution took advantage of its financial position to lure staff less endowed ones.

The workers complained about their service and other conditions including delay in their promotions, salary increment, disparities in the payment of additional hour allowances and poor personal relationship on the part of management and said they were some of the problems driving away. Cardinal Turkson had earlier confirmed 115 people into the Catholic faith. 13 Feb 06