COVID 19: No Ventilators at Western Region’s Ebola Center, facility vandalized

An Ebola Treatment facility, which the Western Region Minister Hon. Kwabena Okyere Darko Mensah trusted could be used as a holding and treatment center for COVID 19 patients in the Western Region, has been vandalized. Thieves have looted properties including air conditioners, beds, and electrical cables, among others from the facility making it less suitable to handle any emergency situation without the right renovation. The facility has been neglected for more than half a decade creating an unwarranted urge for thieves to carryout their nefarious activities.

The facility, situated at the Communicable Diseases Unit (CDU) of the Effia-Nkwanta Regional Hospital, was built in 2014 during the Ebola pandemic with funding support from the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), and has a 15-bed capacity to contain persons/patients infected by the disease. Unfortunately, for some unknown reasons, the facility was never handed over to the Regional Health Directorate for use.

In the wake of the novel coronavirus in the country, and as a preparatory arrangement towards an effective management of an outbreak in the Western Region, the Western Region Minister at a press briefing recently, noted that the Ebola Treatment facility will be converted for the purposes of a COVID-19 Treatment/Holding facility.

But this will definitely come with a huge cost, as some renovations need to be undertaken. This was revealed when authorities of the Western Region Health Directorate and Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital broke into facility for inspection.

Medical Director for Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital, Dr. Joseph Tambil told Skyy News’ Abraham Mensah that, it will cost them not less than Two hundred thousand Ghana Cedi (GHC200,000.00) to renovate the facility so they could use as a treatment center for COVID-19.

“We were talking about it the other day and we felt that with some GH200,000.00, we can do all the wiring, we can get all the beds and air conditioners back to the way it was, and probably even add on temporary places so that we can take on more beds” he mentioned.