By: Peter Dennis
With Support from World Bank, the Ministry of Health on Friday November 6, 2020 donated two brand new ambulances to the Bong County Heath Team (BCHT).
In October of this year, the Ministry of Health (MOH) received ten (10) new hard top ambulances from the World Bank to ensure the safe transfer of patients to health facilities across the Country.
Presenting the keys of the two ambulances to authorities of the Bong County Health Team, Jusu Karpu, a representative from the Ministry of health Transport Division said, the Vehicles were donated to MoH by World Bank for onward distribution, of which Bong County was included.
He explained that Health authorities in the County have on several occasions engaged the Ministry about the lack of emergency vehicles, a situation he said government needed to promptly address.
“In the past time Bong County has been out of ambulances, so we deemed it necessary to donate these ambulances to the Bong County Heath Team after countless calls and appeals from the authorities” Mr. Karpu stated.
The MoH representative also urged drivers expected to be assigned as operators, to take good care of the ambulances as they have been doing in the past.
He believes with the help of the administration, the two cars will properly be maintained.
Receiving the keys and other documents of the vehicles, the newly appointed County Health Team Officer Dr. Jonathan Flomo extended thanks and appreciation to the Ministry of Health and World Bank for timely solving the problem of Ambulance in the County’s health system.
Dr. Flomo noted that with the availability of the two ambulances, it will help ease the tension of referral in the County, improve service delivery and and also curtail the number of maternal and newborn deaths.
He said the Health Team had previously planned to improve service delivery, but was impossible due to the lack of ambulances for the transportation of referral cases.
The Bong County Heath Team Officer stated that his region needed these vehicles, because the county doesn’t have so many health facilities that are providing surgical services with the exception of C. B. Dunbar, Phebe and Bong Mines Hospitals.
He at the same time promised to use the ambulances donated for the purpose intended and also maintain them properly.
It’s not however clear whether either of these ambulances will be officially assigned to major hospitals despite government’s ongoing plans to reassign trained doctors from Phebe Hospital.
Meanwhile, some citizens of the county have extolled the ministry of Health for the donation.
They also believe that the provision of the ambulances is timely.
They however pleaded with the ministry to supply these hospitals with necessary drugs as patients have been slapped in their faces with several prescriptions.
The donation was made at the County Health Team head office in Suakoko, Bong County.
