Security lapses at major hospitals

In recent times, security of lives and properties in most of the major hospitals like the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBU) in Accra, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi and the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) in Tamale have fallen below acceptable standards.

Patients on admission lose their valuables while some hospital staff divert drugs and other equipment for their personal gain. However, what has attracted international attention and alarm is the saga of the missing babies.

Thefts at hospitals

Recently, at the KBU, mobile phones, money and other important items belonging to some parents of children on admission at the Children’s Department vanished under mysterious circumstances.

At the TTH, the former Chief Executive Officer, Dr Ken Sagoe, also decried the increasing rate at which staff of the hospital had been looting the property of the institution, especially consumables, resulting in huge loss to the facility.

He complained that because of the weak security system in the hospital, some negative elements had cultivated the practice of misappropriating and /or reselling drugs and other consumables to suppliers.

Currently, the KATH is undergoing a public roasting for failing to account for a baby they claim was stillborn, even though its body cannot be traced.

Authorities’ reaction

The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection has asked the Ministry of Health (MOH), the Ghana Police Service and other agencies concerned to investigate the circumstances surrounding the missing baby at the KATH in Kumasi.

The MOH has further ordered the CEO of KATH to account for the corpse of the five stillborn babies delivered on the said date within 14 working days.

“Finally, the development casts a slur on the work ethics and attitude of hospital workers,” the MOH stated.

Background

On February 5, this year, Madam Suwaiba Abdul Mumin was delivered of what she suspects was a bouncy baby.

Her hopes were dashed when healthcare workers claimed that the baby was stillborn.

Her sadness turned to anxiety when, subsequently, the hospital authorities failed to produce the body of the baby.

She and her family were told that inexplicably, the body was picked up by a cleaner tidying up the ward on that day.

The cleaner, Baba Abeley, claimed he picked up the box containing the body of the baby and two others and sent same to the incinerator for burning.

Things degenerated into a cruel circus for the already grieving family when the hospital authorities countered that the incinerator had not been used.

What happened to the body then? Thereafter a group of young men and women numbering about 50 invaded the Maternity Ward of the hospital, assaulted nurses, midwives and doctors on duty and vandalised hospital property, all in the name of demanding accountability for the body of the baby.

In view of this, The Mirror enquired from the Public Relations Officer of the KBU, Mr Mustapha Salifu, what his institution was doing to reduce burglary and other crimes.

Mr Salifu mentioned that currently empty taxis are not allowed to ply through the hospital.

“KBU is a very big facility. Therefore, it is very challenging to monitor certain crimes like stealing within the wards because people go and come every minute. It is up to caregivers and patients on admission to take proper care of their property so that they don’t lose them to thieves”.

Interestingly, the 37 Military Hospital and Police Hospital seem not to have a lot of challenges in terms of security due to the fact that they are both security-related hospitals.

At the time of going to press, two of the missing stillborn babies had been found.