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| TTH |
Beneficiaries of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) in
Tamale and its surrounding communities are likely to be turned away by
the authorities at the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) due to the
non-payment of outstanding claims by the National Health Insurance
Authority (NHIA).
The NHIA owes the hospital GH¢2,200,000 for services rendered
between September 2012 to January 2013. About 90% of patients who seek
healthcare at the Tamale Teaching Hospital are card bearing members of
the NHIS.
Speaking at the 2012 Annual Performance Review Meeting, the Chief
Executive Officer (CEO) of the Tamale Teaching Hospital, Dr. Ken Sagoe,
disclosed that the delay in the payment of the claims had compounded the
financial burdens of the hospital, and also put pressure on the meager
Internally Generated Funds.
He, therefore, appealed to the NHIA to consider reimbursing the
hospital, in order for it to continue to offer quality health delivery
to the people.
The purpose of the Annual Performance Review Meeting was to assess
the performance of the Tamale Teaching Hospital for the year 2012, share
and exchange views, and chart the way forward for the year 2013 and
beyond.
Dr. Sagoe said that funding from the central government budget had
reduced considerably, and this required that the hospital depend on its
Internally Generated Funds this year.
According to him, the Tamale Teaching Hospital, in 2012, spent over
GH¢450,000 to rent and maintain accommodation for some key staff, and
an additional GH¢1,200,000 to retain essential staff.
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| Dr. Ken Sagoe |
On utilities, Dr. Sagoe lamented: "The water crisis has been with us
for a long time, and does not seem to end. We spent up to 30% of our
fuel cost in 2012 in fueling tankers of other government departments to
supply us with water, in addition to buying more than GH¢5,000 a month
from commercial water tankers. Let me singularly commend the National
Fire Service for unparalleled support and partnership. In this regard,
we appealed to the Minister of Health for a water tanker, and plans are
far advanced to procure one for us. The wheels of procurement grind
slowly. Regular, uninterrupted and stable electricity supply continues
to elude us, and the toll on our generators by way of wear and tear and
fuel cost is very high. The significant fluctuation in power and the
'dum so', 'dum so' has also damaged some of our equipment."
However, the year 2012, according to the CEO, saw some significant
achievements, including the rehabilitation and expansion project, which
recorded a major landmark with the completion and partial handing over
of the new Block E. The building provides services for emergency
medicine, radiology and other imaging facilities, general wards,
intensive care unit, and a modern theatre with cutting
edge/state-of-the-art equipment.
He said that the Staff Housing Project, meant to accommodate up to 60
professional staff and their families, had also seen significant
development, as all the project structures have been roofed, and
expected to be completed by the middle of this year.
The hospital also took delivery of over 160 desktop computers and 30
laptops, several servers, and Cisco switches and routers from a Ghanaian
ICT Consultant based in Holland, Mr. Clement Adu-Twum, of the ROC
Mondriaan, which has made the hospital's ICT infrastructure one of the
best in Ghana.
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