Three health facilities receive US$100,000 worth of PPE

The continuous adherence to the Covid-19 preventive protocols will not only enable the country to defeat the pandemic but also ensure that all sanitation-related diseases were prevented.

Dr Patrick Amo-Mensah, the Head of Ussher Polyclinic in Accra, said the strict adherence to the protocols such as regular hand washing with soap under running water, use of sanitisers and general cleanliness over the past eight months had led to a reduction in outbreak of sanitation-related diseases.

These include cholera, typhoid, dysentery, diarrhoea, hepatitis A and polio across the country.

Dr Amoh-Mensah said this when the Polyclinic took delivery of some Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) from Children Believe, a Non-Governmental Organisation in Accra on Thursday.

The items are to support frontline health workers at the clinic in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

They include 29 five-litter gallons of bleach, 22 gallons of liquid soap, 61 pieces of medical face shield, six veronica buckets with stands, 22 boxes of sterile disposable gloves, seven packs of disposable gowns, five thermometre guns and hand sanitisers.

Dr Amoah-Mensah said: “If we compare this year to last year on cases that come with bad sanitation and cases that come with faecal-oral, we realized that the trend has reduced. Typhoid fever cases have reduced.”

“We have also not recorded any case of cholera and so we believe that the regular hand washing that was introduced because of COVID-19, side-by-side, has also helped reduce these other diseases.”

The PPE, donated in collaboration with the Assemblies of God-Care Ghana (AG-Care), targeted three health facilities within the Greater Accra Region; g Ussher Polyclinic, Korle-Bu Polyclinic, and the Ga East Hospital.

It was funded by ChildFund Korea at a cost of US$100,000. Dr Amoah-Mensah commended Children Believe and AG-Care Ghana for the support saying the donation had come at the appropriate time because the clinic had intended to procure such materials to aid its frontline health workers.

He cautioned the public against complacency as that would derail the country’s effort at totally eradicating the disease.

“We still keep seeing new cases but because most of the cases are asymptomatic people are taking it for granted. Until the World Health Organisation and the Ghana Health Service announce that it’s over we have to continue to adhere to all the protocols and preventions outlined,” he said.

Madam Esenam Kavi De Souza, Country Manager, Children Believe, said the disease continued to impact negatively on women, children and youth, especially those in the urban slums and on the streets.

She said the items, therefore, formed part of many projects being implemented by the NGO to enhance COVID-19 preventive capacity and alleviate its impacts.

“It also seeks to improve food security for 300 youth whose livelihoods are severely impacted by movement restriction measures due to COVID-19 outbreak in the project districts,” she said.

She urged the public to continue to support the country’s health facilities to ensure a complete victory against the pandemic.

Mr J.K. Wumbee, Executive Director, AG-Care Ghana, in a speech read on his behalf, said the donation was a reaffirmation of the organisations’ commitment to working with government to reinforce the country’s COVID-19 prevention and response efforts.

He said in the coming days, 700 people would be assisted to either register or renew their National Health Insurance Cards, and provide food and financial assistance to 150 individuals and households to improve their livelihoods.