Ghanaians in Addis Ababa donate for telemedicine facilities

Dodowa, Aug. 7, GNA - The Ghanaian community in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Friday donated telemedicine facilities valued at 10,000 dollars to the Ridge Hospital in Accra and the Dodowa Government Hospital in the Dangbe West District of the Greater Accra Region. Telemedicine facilities are computers linked to cameras which are used to diagnose diseases without the patients necessarily having any physical contact with the doctor. The machine can be used only when two or more hospitals have the same facility.

Speaking at the presentation, Mr Emmanuel Lartey, District Chief Executive of Dodowa, thanked the donors for their kindness, and said the facility would help cut the cost of healthcare delivery since there would be no need for referrals.

"Linking our hospital to a well endowed hospital like Ridge Hospital will give us the opportunity to enjoy specialist services which are non-existent here in Dodowa," he added.

He appealed to the Ministry of Health to furnish the hospital with all the needed equipment and personnel to enable it to function as effectively as required, because being a District Hospital it received referral cases from health centres in the nearby towns and villages. Dr Ida Opoku-Mensah, who presented the equipment on behalf of the Ghanaian community in Addis Ababa, urged the beneficiary hospitals to make good use of the facility for the benefit of patients.

Dr Alberta Amu, Medical Superintendent of Dodowa Hospital, thanked the Regional Health Directorate for choosing the two hospitals for the project and promised to take good care of the equipment when installed. 7 Aug. 09