Friday, August 19, 2011

GUSHEGU GETS TWO NEW CLINICS


The Gushegu District Chief Executive (DCE) Alhassan Fuseini on behalf of the President John Evans Atta Mills has commissioned two Clinics at Nabuli and Zamashagu communities in the district to address the health needs of the people.

The Nabuli project which cos over GH¢57,000 was funded by the Gushegu District Assembly through the Community Based Rural Programme (CBRP) and it is expected to cater for the health needs of a population of about 22,565 people living in the 78 satelitte communities surrounding Nabuli.

However, the Zamashegu Clinic project which also valued at GH¢88,000 was funded by the Northern Rural Poverty Reduction Programme (NORPREP). The two clinics are attached with nurses’ bungalows to also cater for the accommodation needs of the health personnel working at the facilities.

Previously, the people of Nabuli in particular including women in labour used to travel over 46 kilometers from the Nabuli community to access healthcare or antenatal services at the Gushegu Government Hospital. This according to the Gushegu District Chief Executive was posing serious threat to the lives of most pregnant women and also brought about high incidence of maternal mortality rates.

Mr. Alhassan Fuseini said the provision of the health facilities was in fulfillment of government’s Better Ghana agenda towards making health service delivery more accessible and affordable to the people.

The DCE noted that it was incumbent on every government especially a socially democratic government like the National Democratic Congress to take every necessary measures to secure the health of its people or human resource base to enhance productivity and national development.

“Ghana cannot go into the 2012 elections with unhealthy citizens and that is why our government is doing everything possible to provide the necessary infrastructure to address the health needs of our people”.

Mr. Alhassan Fuseini was particularly unhappy about the continuous trauma most patients go through in travelling all the way from deprived communities in the Gushegu District to either Yendi or Tamale for medical treatment and therefore assured the people of government’s commitment to provide adequate health facilities in most of the community to lessen their burdens.

He hinted that government by the close of this year would connect about 15 deprived communities in the district to the national electricity grid under the Rural Electrification Project.

The DCE however strongly appealed to the Chiefs and people of the district to allow peace, unity and understanding to prevail so as to encourage government and other investors to provide the requisite developmental projects and job opportunities.

Mr. Alhassan Fuseini mentioned the poor road network in the district as one of the major challenges facing farmers, traders and other people who trek the area and hinted that the District Assembly had been able to secure a New Grader to reshape all the feeder roads linking all the communities.

The Northern Regional Director of Health Services, Dr. Akwasi Twumasi who received the Keys to the two Clinics thanked the Gushegu district assembly for its continued support to the health sector, which he said was evidenced by the massive infrastructural development provided in most of the communities.

He however expressed worry about the insufficient number of health personnel in Gushegu district and Northern Region in general. Dr. Twumasi hinted that the Ghana Health Service in the region was currently relying on only 36% of their staff capacity and thus required additional 64% to ensure efficiency.

The Regional Director applead to the Chiefs and other authorities in the district to identify brilliant students who were interested in the health profession for professional training in any of the health training schools to enable them render health services to their respective communities.

The Gushegu District Director of Health, Alhaji A.B Yakubu hoped with the additional clinics, the alarming rate of infant and maternal deaths in the area would be drastically reduced. He implored residents of the district to do away with cultural practices that were inimical to maternal health.

Alhaji A.B Yakubu bemoaned the bizarre situation in which pregnant women suffered at the hands of some traditional birth attendants when there were health facilities to ensure safe delivery.

The Gushegu District Health Director appealed to the district assembly to replace a zanamat shed under which pregnant women are attended to in the Naabuli community with a better structure.

The team later inspected the ongoing Health Assistants Training School project in Gushegu and as well visited the District Health Directorate building renovated by the Member of Parliament for Gushegu, Kwesi Thomas Nassam.

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