Coronavirus: Media urged to strengthen advocacy on preventive measures

Dr Oheneba Owusu-Danso, Chief Executive of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi, has charged the media to strengthen its advocacy roles to ensure that Ghanaians adhere strictly to the COVID-19 preventive protocols.

He said it was important for the media to actively get the populace to be very careful of the virus and comply with preventive protocols, which were the only means to halt the continuous spread of the virus in the country.

“People should get to understand the negative impact of the virus and take appropriate decisions in their daily lives and this should be the responsibility of the media to embark on a sustained campaign,” he stated at a meeting with senior journalists and media practitioners in Kumasi.

Dr Owusu-Danso pointed out that the resurgence of covid-19 infections in the country in the first weeks of January should be of great concern to all.

“The positivity rate in the first half of January is alarming and as I speak to you there are over 26 cases on admission while several others are at holding centres awaiting their test results,” he hinted.

Dr Owusu-Danso said management was working to upgrade the hospital’s specialist services by improving on the existing ones and also add on new specialist services.

He said the hospital would this year commence operations of the GHc 2.2 million Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) Centre which had been funded through the internally generated funds of the hospital.

Additionally, the Korean Foundation for International Healthcare (KOFIH) is assisting the hospital with funds to procure specialized equipment and instruments as well as the training of surgeons, nurses and allied staff in South Korea, in readiness for the take-off of a specialized Laparoscopy centre by the middle of the year.

The One-million dollar Laparoscopy centre will facilitate the provision of pinhole or minimally invasive surgical services and help greatly improve surgical outcomes at the facility.

Dr Owusu-Danso said though the year 2020 was a challenging one due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, management was able to procure and install various forms of equipment worth over eight million Ghana cedis in almost all the directorates and units to improve on service delivery and enhance quality healthcare for patients.

He commended the media for their continuous support to the hospital which had helped in the growth of the facility and improvement in its services to the public.