The Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital has announced the resumption of its dialysis services after a delay caused by clearance issues with consumables at the port.
According to Dr. Opoku Ware Ampomah, Chief executive officer of the hospital, the necessary consumables have been received, and outpatient services will commence immediately.
This comes on the back of challenges with the delay of clearing consumables at the port causing concern among renal patients. The Renal Patients Association has also served notice of picketing at Korle-Bu over the matter.
Speaking on Morning Starr with Lantam Papanko, Dr. Ampomah assured that the hospital had made arrangements to airlift some of the consumables to avoid further delays. “We have received the necessary consumables to start the outpatient service, so there’s no need for them to picket,” he said.
Dr. Ampomah also disclosed that the hospital had faced financial challenges last year due to its commitment to providing free dialysis services to patients. “We prioritized saving the lives of the patients over just trying to recover costs,” he said.
He explained that the hospital had been providing dialysis services for about 230 renal patients free of charge, with the bill being taken up by a philanthropist, the First Sky Group. However, when COVID hit, the philanthropist could not keep up with payments, leading to a financial issue.
Dr. Ampomah said they decided to continue providing the service, hoping that things would get better adding that this was because they prioritized saving patients’ lives over recovering costs. “The hospital never closed entirely, with inpatient and emergency services continuing”, he added.
Dr. Ampomah urged patients to remain calm and assured them that the hospital is committed to providing the best possible care. “Korle-Bu is doing all this for the patients free of charge. It’s the best in terms of the quality of it and the outcomes,” he said.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/NUKPETA YAA DORCAS
