The Ebola isolation centre at the Tema General Hospital in the Greater Accra Region is undergoing some re-modification to protect the tent material against the vagaries of the weather.

A visit to the facility revealed construction workers were busily mounting a roof over the tent structure which was erected last year to manage suspected cases in the southern sector.

In an interview with the Tema Metropolitan Health Director, Dr John Yabani at the sidelines of the inauguration of a 24-member Ebola Response Committee for the Tema Metropolis, he said the re-modification is to protect the facility and the logistics inside from the harsh weather conditions and minimize heat.

He added that more storage rooms and other essential facilities were also being provided to boost the country's Ebola preparedness.

The Tema General Hospital is one of three health facilities earmarked to handle suspected Ebola cases in the country, should there be an outbreak of the disease.

Ebola Response Team

The 24-member Tema Ebola Response Committee is to ensure the preparedness of the metropolis to handle or contain an outbreak of the disease should there be one.

Membership is made up of various stakeholders from public and private health institutions, education sector, the Tema Traditional council, Christian and Muslim religious bodies, the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), Information Services Department, the Ghana Police Service, The Ghana Navy, and the Tema Metropolitan Assembly, among others.

Terms of Reference

According to Dr Yabani the Committee is to among other things, ensure that the Tema Metropolis is mobilized and educated on the risks of the disease. They are also to ensure good surveillance, setting up of measures so that anybody using the various entry points in the metropolis, especially the Port went through the necessary screening.

He indicated that the Committee is also to ensure the various teams, including burial team, case management team, contact tracing team and rapid response teams are all put in place. The Committee is also to ensure that various health workers are trained and well prepared to receive any suspected Ebola case.

He disclosed that members of the committee would undergo a day’s training with facilitators from the Tema General Hospital to better equip them for the task ahead.

Dr Yabani noted that Tema, by way of its location and fishing activities, is strategic hence the need to evolve measures to prevent the disease from entering the country.

He said even though the Tema Port was well maintained, other entry points still needed attention as currently people could easily move in and out without any proper monitoring.

MCE Tema Metropolitan Chief Executive,  Mr Isaac Ashai Odamtten, who inaugurated the committee, tasked them to be proactive and prompt enough not to wait for things to happen, but rather strategise and plan well to help achieve the assembly’s targets of preventing Ebola from entering the country.

He also charged them to take the activities of the committee seriously and attend all meetings in addition to being ambassadors in their various communities.

The MCE disclosed that in order to facilitate the work of the committee, a social media platform would be created in addition to other modes of communication to aid information sharing among committee members and timely response to any situation on the ground.

Ebola deaths, Figures as at February 3, 2015

Liberia      3,746

S. Leone  3,301

Guinea     1,957

Nigeria           8