The Presbyterian Hospital at Donkorkrom in the Afram Plains, has run out of essential drugs for the treatment of patients.
Some of the essential drugs include, antisnake venom, artesunate injection for malaria treatment, frusemide, insulin, oxytomide, and cytotec for pregnant women.
This is due to the failure of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) to pay the hospital for the treatment of clients, to enable the hospital to purchase the essential drugs.
The hospital has no alternative than to prescribe the drugs to the patients.
The General Manager of the Kwahu Presbyterian Health Services, Mr Kwaku Fianko Gyan, disclosed this to the Ghana News Agency Media Auditing and Tracking of Development Projects team, in an interview at Donkorkrom in the Kwahu Afram Plains North District.
He disclosed that the NHIA was indebtedness to the hospital of over GH¢ 7,000 from May to October this year.
Mr Gyan said, due to the indebtedness of the hospital, its suppliers have refused to supply them with the needed drugs as the hospital was owing them over GH¢ 400,000.
He said the hospital is the only hospital serving the two districts of Kwahu Afram Plains South and North, with a population of 117,000 inhabitants within 558 settlements, and the referral hospital for all the five health centres, clinics and the 20 Community Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compounds in the two districts.
The General Manager warned that if the NHIA failed to release funds to the hospital within one month, management would have to advise itself.
He said an essential drug like the anti-snake venom is only supplied by the regional medical store at Koforidua, and therefore, a patient bitten by a snake, has to be referred to either the regional hospital at Koforidua, or the Okomfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi, adding that the possibility of the patient reaching the referred hospital alive is also another matter, due to the remoteness of the hospital.
