CT scan at Koforidua hospital breaks down …patients frustrated

The only Computerized Tomography (CT) scan equipment at the Eastern Regional Hospital serving the entire Region has been dysfunctional for over a year creating serious challenge to quality healthcare.

Consequently, the situation is causing inconveniences to families and threatening lives of patients particularly the bedridden and critically ill ones.

Since the breakdown of the equipment, all patients who require CT scan are referred to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra for CT Scan services to return the result to the hospital to continue healthcare.

CT scan is very critical in quality healthcare delivery .CT scan is well-suited to quickly examine people who may have internal injuries from car accidents or other types of trauma. A CT scan is used to visualize nearly all parts of the body and is used to diagnose disease or injury as well as to plan medical, surgical or radiation treatment.

Speaking to the media at the sidelines of the Annual Review Meeting and media engagement, the Medical Director at the Eastern Regional Hospital Dr. Arko Akoto Ampaw said upon cost benefit assessment of the element of the CT scan, the imagery has been consumed and requires replacement.

“The CT scan which is broken down over a year ago and it’s broken down because the element that generates the imagery has been consumed but the machine itself is in good state.

“However the cost of the element is so expensive we must as well get a new CT scan and even possibly upgrade from a sixteen size CT scan to a thirty two or sixty four. The cost of procuring that is also very high”.

The Medical Director decried the unavailability of the CT Scan has made delivery of quality healthcare difficult.

“A common one is when somebody has a stroke in the brain it may be that a blood vessel is burst for which bleeding into the brain occurs or a blood vessel in the brain is blocked so for which the brain cells are not getting oxygen. If there is a block of the vessel, we give medicines that will thin out the block however if it is that a vessel is burst and is a bleeding we give medicines that will clot the blood. The only way you can see those two difference is to use the CT scan and so if the CT scan is not available, how are you going to know whether you will give medicines that will thin out the block or you will give medicines that will clot or coagulate the blood and that is how come it is very important”.

Management of Eastern Regional Hospital says they have officially informed all major stakeholders including the Ghana Health Service, the ministry of health, and the MP for New Juaben South, Michael Okyere Baafi , however, the problem still persists.

The facility is appealing to Philanthropists and NGOs to come to the aide of the hospital to help bring the CT scan unit back for operation.

The Eastern Regional Hospital is a referral facility in the region. Out patients Department Attendance (OPD) rose from 232,485 in 2020 to 264,640 in 2021 representing 13.8% increase . Admissions rose from 21,396 in 2020 to 24 ,713 in 2021.

The hospital however recorded 1,694 deaths in 2021 compared to 1,808 in 2020 representing 6.7% declined.

Maternal Mortality and neonatal mortality have been decreased by 50% and 10.7% respectively.

The Medical Director of the Eastern Regional Hospital Dr. Arkoh Akoto Ampaw said stroke, diabetes, hypertension are the top causes of deaths at the facility

The Medical Director of the Eastern Regional Hospital Dr.Arko Akoto Ampaw explained that, “the top causes of mortalities still remain lifestyle diseases so the stroke, diabetes, hypertension are still very high on the agenda and then also a few communicable diseases like HIV still featured in there” .

The 95-year-old Hospital is facing infrastructural and logistical challenges including inadequate functional vehicles for administrative work.

“Challenge of maintaining old structures is the cost involve, and that is how come most areas once the thing is as old as what it has to be they decommission to commission a new one.Beside the buildings and the structures, our vehicles are also very old and the newest vehicle of probably more than seven years old which must be decommission by the high use of an institution like this,” Dr.Akoto Ampaw said.

Source : Starrfm.com.gh