The Ashanti Region has been carved into 1,080 Community-based Health Planning Services (CHPS) zones as part of stepped up efforts to promote access to quality healthcare.

Dr. Alexis Nang-beifubah, the Regional Health Director, said these had been designed to coincide with the electoral areas and a community health nurse assigned to each of them.

He identified problems with residential accommodation, logistics and transport as the main hurdles that would have to be surmounted.

He was speaking at the annual performance review meeting of the regional health directorate in Kumasi.

The three-day programme was held under the theme, “Approaching the finishing line of the MDGs, doing things differently”.

It was attended by Directors of Ghana Health Service (GHS) and the Health Ministry, health professionals and development partners, chiefs and the clergy and provided the platform to discuss achievements, best practices, the challenges and the way forward.

Dr. Nang-beifubah spoke of on-going projects meant to boost access to healthcare and mentioned among these, a 150-bed hospital at Tepa and a Regional Hospital at Sewua.

There is also the construction of district hospitals at Sekyere-Kumawu, Fomena and Konongo.

He told the gathering that the 120-bed capacity Bekwai District Hospital was now about 80 per cent completed and would be ready by 2016.

All the projects when completed would significantly enhance service delivery and make quality healthcare accessible to the people.

Mr. Samuel Sarpong, the Ashanti Regional Minister, made reference to the theme and said it was most appropriate and relevant as the nation worked hard to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MGDs) by the end of 2015.

He underlined the government’s commitment towards strengthening the health sector to meet the MDGs and said evidence of this could be seen from the various projects and programmes it had embarked on with the goal of improving maternal and neo-natal health.

He cited access to obstetric care in all health facilities, to reduce maternal mortality, expansion of midwifery and nursing training institutions, monitoring and review of existing health policies.