Cape Coast, Feb. 24, GNA - The Central Regional Director of Health Services, Dr McDamien Dedzo, on Tuesday appealed to individuals and organisations to support the directorate financially, to enable it provide motivation for attracting and retaining health workers in the region.

He noted that even though there has been a slight improvement in the number of doctors and nurses posted to the region in recent times, their number was "woefully in- adequate" and that the region was "still in dire need of health professionals and other support staff". Dr Dedzo made the appeal at the opening of a three-day 'annual performance review conference' of the regional health directorate at Cape Coast, on the theme; "effective partnership for healthier society". He said there are currently 64 doctors, 1,060 nurses and 212 midwives in the region, while a paediatrician has just been posted and resumed work at the Central Regional Hospital. Dr Dedzo said the Region was able to successfully implement its disease surveillance last year, resulting in an increase in tuberculosis cure rate of 81.8 percent, 13 percent more than in 2007, while polio cases were reduced from 3.2 percent in 2007 to 1.75 last year. On maternal health care, he said even though maternal mortality reduced from 190 in 2007 to 160 in 2008, more needs to be done to "avoid needless and avoidable deaths".

Dr Dedzo said malaria fatality rate among vulnerable groups like children under five and pregnant women, declined from 4.0 per cent and 0.24 per cent in 2007 to 3.4 per cent and 0.1 per cent in 2008 respectively, adding that, this was achieved through various interventions in malaria prevention.

He however, noted that more needed to be done to curb tuberculosis, polio and HIV/AIDS, which prevalence rate increased from 10,000 in 2007 to 52,000 in 2008.

Dr Dedzo underscored the importance of quality health care delivery to the socio-economic development of the region and nation at large, and appealed to health personnel and all stakeholders to work together to help reduce diseases and preventable deaths to the barest minimum. On funding, he said, internally generated funds formed 74 per cent of their financial resources, with clients of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) contributing about 90 per cent of the amount, the government, five percent and the remainder from donor partners. The Regional Minister, Madam Ama Benyiwa Doe, in a speech read for her, reiterated that it was the policy of government to expand and improve health facilities to enhance health care delivery. She stressed the President's determination to ensure good environmental sanitation, by calling for clean up exercises throughout the country, to help stem communicable diseases, and to ensure a healthy people and environment.

Madam Doe said bottlenecks associated with the NHIS would soon be addressed by government in consultation with all stakeholders to ensure its sustenance.

She charged the directorate to come up with innovative and pragmatic solutions to help stem the challenges facing health care delivery in the Region. The Oguaahen, Osabarima Kwesi Atta II, who chaired the function, noted that with only six years left to achieve targets set under the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), it would be imperative for health workers to work harder in helping to attain the goals. 25 Feb. 09