Donated Hospital Equipment, Drugs Go Waste

ITEMS, hospital equipment and a large quantity of assorted drugs donated by some philanthropists abroad over the last two years, have been lying idle because the equipment is obsolete and unserviceable, while the drugs have either expired or are completely unsuitable for health care delivery in the country.

The items which were meant for distribution to various health institutions in Cape Coast and the region as a whole include an autoclave, heart-beat checking machines and machines for the monitoring of foetus and other organs in the abdomen.

Mr. Kwaku Asare-Bimpong, Regional Health Administrator (RHA), who made this known to newsmen in Cape Coast after he had received a quantity of hospital items worth $5,000, donated by Crystal Lion's Club of Cape Coast, did not mention the drugs involved.

The items also include a respirator, an incubator, baby weighing scales and assorted drugs which are to be distributed to the Cape Coast District and UCC hospital and the Ajumako, Elmina and Abura Dunkwa Health centres.

He expressed regret that as a result, the administration had no option but dispose of them and advised donors to contact health institutions to know their needs in order to avoid such waste.

The RHA, however, expressed concern about the fact that although drugs donated usually arrive in the country in good state, they expire before reaching the beneficiaries because of the long period taken to clear them from the ports.

He pleaded with the club to contact the beneficiary institutions to determine their needs before making donations and assured them that the items would be put to good use.

Mr. Moses Asamoah-Ahai, president of the club, who presented the items, said it was the objective of the club to provide services to the less privileged in society.

He said the club has among others already donated clothes and food to the disabled and orphanages in the region.