LOW OPD ATTENDANCE AT KUMASI HOSPITALS AFTER STRIKE

A patient receiving medical care

Members of the Ghana Medical Association working in public healthcare facilities in the Ashanti region resumed work this morning, Monday August 24 from their three-week industrial action. 

Our Correspondent reports from the regional capital, Kumasi, after a visit to some of the public health facilities in the metropolis, that one situation ran through almost all the facilities. 

That is, a very low OPD attendance at most of the hospitals compared to what pertains on a normal working day.

 At the main Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital OPD, the usually congested OPD was just about one-third occupied by healthcare seekers as at 11 am with the medical doctors, nurses and other auxiliary healthcare staff all set to help the patients.

 Some of the patients confirmed to Ashanti Today that indeed, they had been attended to by medical doctors at the Consulting Rooms. 

The situation was the same at the Consultants Section adjacent to the OPD where attendance was beginning to pick up.

 At the Family Hospital formally the Komfo Anokye Hospital Polyclinic, the low OPD attendance was obvious with most of the benches being empty at the time of the visit. 

There were a handful of some of the patients who had already returned from the Consulting room and waiting for the respective turns to receive their prescribed medication from the Hospital’s Pharmacy. 

The same story low OPD attendance was witnessed at the Manhyia District Hospital as at 12 mid-day.

 An Assistant Hospital Administrator, Kofi Opoku told Ashanti Today that the Hospital has nine medical doctors made up of six general practitioners and three Specialists in addition to three Physician Assistants who run three daily shifts.

 As at the time of the visit, about 100 patients had already sought healthcare compared with the 300 average daily visits.

 Mr. Kofi Opoku said even though members of the GMA were on strike for three weeks, the healthcare at the facility did not suffer too much in view of an earlier arrangement that the management had made with some medical practitioners who used to provide OPD care to patients who called at the hospital during the period of strike. 

 As at the time of Radio Ghana’s visit, all the doctors in the morning shift were on duty. It is only the Ashanti Regional Hospital designate popularly called Agogo Hospital at Kyirapatre where there was virtually no change in OPD attendance because the facility had been running normal schedules during the period of the strike. 

Meanwhile, the Secretary to the Ashanti Division of the Ghana Medical Association, Dr. Ishmael Kyei has confirmed to Radio Ghana that all members of the Association have been advised to resume work.

 Dr. Kyei disclosed that the Ashanti Division of the GMA has a membership of about one thousand 400 with Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital alone having about 900 of such professionals made up of General practitioners, Specialists, Consultants and House officers.