High attrition rate of nurses not affecting health care delivery in Obuasi - Health Director

Contrary to the widely held view that the recent increase in the attrition rate of nurses in the country has affected health care delivery, available data from the Obuasi Municipal Health directorate confirms that the situation has not affected the nurse-to-patient ratio in the Obuasi Municipality.

Ghana is now ranked among some 55 countries facing “a serious shortage of health workers,” according to the World Health Organisation (WH0).

Despite this, the Obuasi Municipal Health Director, Martin Safo Osei said the health facilities in the municipality are not affected by the number of health professionals especially nurses leaving the country to seek greener pastures.

Speaking to the media after the 2023 annual performance review meeting, the health director said the 1-nurse to 380-patient ratio recorded in 2023 exceeds the estimated target of 1 nurse to 450 patients set by the directorate.

He commended health workers in the municipality for holding the fort by demonstrating high levels of commitment and dedication to improved quality healthcare delivery despite the challenges.

Mr. Safo Osei bemoaned the increasing rate of motorcycle accidents in the country. He said health personnel in the municipality have faced torrid times dealing with serious injuries and fatalities resulting from these accidents.

He said his outfit has met the leadership of the local motor riders association commonly known as "Okada" and sensitized them on the need to observe safe riding to avoid injuries and fatalities.

Rise in mental health cases:

A psychiatric nurse at the Obuasi Government Hospital, Victor Nuamah expressed concern about the alarming rate of mental health cases in the Obuasi Municipality.

"At least you will meet a mental health patient at every 100-meter walk. This is really worrying," he said.

Although there is a lack of reliable data regarding the prevalence of mental and neurological disorders in the country, WHO estimates that approximately 13 percent of Ghanaians suffer from a mental disorder. Out of the 13, 3 percent suffer from a severe mental disorder, and the other 10 percent suffer from a
moderate to mild mental illness.

According to Mr. Nuamah, the number of Schizophrenic, schizotypal, and delusional disorder cases increased from 28 in 2022 to 30 in 2023 while issues of mental delusion due to alcohol, and psychoactive substance use increased from 28 in 2022 to 38 in 2023.

He called on stakeholders to come together to facilitate the discussion on mental health issues and devise ways to solve the problem.

Dialysis machine

Meanwhile, the Head of Administration of the Obuasi Government Hospital, Peace Mati, has revealed that the hospital has received a dialysis machine that has been installed. The dialysis machine was a donation from the Asaase Foundation.

She said health professionals will undergo training on how to effectively operate the machine while efforts are being made to procure consumables to ensure patients who need dialysis are properly taken care of.