Ridge Hospital handicapped but not fully shut down – Health Ministry

The ministry of health has confirmed the closure of newly refurbished the Accra Regional Hospital also known as the Ridge hospital three days after it was opened to the public by the Health Minister, Kweku Agyeman Manu.

Meanwhile the Ministry says plans are far advanced to get the ultra modern facility partially functional from Monday May 22, 2017.

TV3 has intercepted a leaked document presented to the Director General of the Ghana Health Service indicating tools and equipment needed before the facility commences full operation.

A visit to the hospital on Friday showed office doors shut, the main entrance closed with very little activity at the facility. Managers will not speak to TV3 on reports that the facility is yet to treat a single patient, three days after the health minister opened it.

A walk around the facility to find out if indeed these newly opened departments were working proved otherwise with offices clearly under lock and key and empty rooms spotted from outside.

Tv3 intercepted a leaked document prepared by the embattled director of the hospital, Dr. Anaba to the Director General of the Ghana Health Service detailing the tools and equipment needed for a smooth take off of the hospital.

Equipment such as instruments for burns, amputation set, self retaining retractors are not available. The general surgery, paediatric thoracic, neurosurgery, urology, trauma and orthopaedics, radiology, pathology, all do not have basic equipment for use.

The leaked document to the Director General of the Ghana Health Service also requested training for staff towards the use of the equipment if installed. TV3 has gathered all these have not been done.

The Ghana Health Service will not comment on the document but the Public Relations Officer of the Health Ministry, Robert Cudjoe confirmed it indicating that “you can’t have everything running 100 percent. Our needs are many but our resources are limited.

“So for such a big edifice I don’t think it’s a big deal if all the rooms are not fitted with the machines that are required. Going forward I think we can procure them.”

We then sought to find out from him the justification for opening the facility when it lacked equipment and he answered by saying “it is not a big deception.

There was a program for the opening, then a cleaning up of the facility and its surroundings… come Monday May 22, 2017 services will begin.”