'No-bed' deaths sad development – Mahama

Former President John Dramani Mahama has described the situation where patients lose their lives over no beds in the various hospitals in Ghana as a sad development.

Former President John Dramani Mahama has described the situation where patients lose their lives over no beds in the various hospitals in Ghana as a sad development.

He has therefore, asked the current government to expand access to health facilities across the country in order to deal with the situation.

His comments follow the 70-year-old man, Anthony Opoku Acheampon, who lost his life at the LEKMA hospital after six other hospitals refused to admit him due to an apparent lack of beds.

Ishmael Opoku, son of the deceased man explained that the incident happened on 3 June 2018 after he received a phone call from his mother to come home and assist in taking his father to the hospital because he was complaining of headache and dizziness.

At midnight, Mr Opoku and his mother drove the old man to the C&J Hospital at Adabraka where a nurse turned them away with the no-bed excuse without even administering first aid.

They left C&J Hospital to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital where the same excuse was given. From Korle-Bu, they made trips to Korle-Bu Polyclinic, the Accra Regional Hospital, the Police Hospital and LEKMA Hospital where his father eventually died. All the hospitals they visited turned them away over claims that there was no bed.

At the LEKMA hospital, Mr Opoku said his mother knelt before the doctor and pleaded that her dying husband be attended to, but the doctor refused to take care of him, insisting there was nothing he could do. Mr Acheampon died in his son’s car after all attempts to get him medical treatment failed.

Commenting on this development, Mr Mahama in a tweet said: “Very sad development. There are some who said ‘we don’t eat roads! We don't eat hospitals!’”

He added: “We must expand access to health facilities across the country.”