Open letter to Kwame A-Plus

Dear Kwame A-Plus,

I have read with shock your bizarre description of the President’s joint commissioning, of ambulances for every district in Ghana, as a celebration of mediocrity. I can only pardon your ignorance. There are still some in Ghana today who think an ambulance is just a car to carry sick people to the hospital. They do not understand the concept of an ambulance service and do not wish to learn about it. And for such people, this massive boost to healthcare delivery is an act of mediocrity.

A few days ago, I had what I thought was a medical emergency in the United Kingdom. A friend called the ambulance service. Due to how overstretched the ambulance service is in the United Kingdom, they declined to dispatch an ambulance. They advised rather I make my way to the nearest Accidents and Emergency Center. I did.

I spent four hours in the emergency ward waiting to get an initial assessment. Six whole hours after my arrival I was yet to be seen by a doctor. In pain and anguish, worsened by not even getting a bed to lie on, I took the decision to go home. When I got home however my condition worsened. I called the ambulance again; this time they agreed to come.

Twenty minutes later, I was in an ambulance receiving treatment which was probably life-saving. Before I arrived at the hospital, samples of my blood had been taken and some rapid tests had been conducted to eliminate certain conditions as the most likely cause of the pain I was in. The care I received was enough to relieve the anguish I was facing and give me the strength to endure another three hours wait before being seen by a doctor. The information passed on to the doctor also meant eventually he spent less time on me than he would have if he had to gather it all from scratch. If you know realize that in an emergency situation every second count in determining whether the patient survives or die you would apologize for your ignorance.

An ambulance isn’t merely a car to carry the sick; it is a mobile clinic that has men and women trained to give life-saving care. To roll out an ambulance service is, therefore, a big deal! It is in equivalent terms more or less like commissioning the same number of CHIPs compounds. These ambulances would service hundreds of lives. No previous Government could roll it out because it isn't a mere walk in the park. For the first time in the history of Ghana, every single district would have an operational ambulance properly staffed and equipped. If this is mediocre, then pray, let Ghana be visited by more of it!

Let’s not allow blind rage and malice distort thinking.

A Patriot.

Kofi Opare Hagan