Health worker urges co-operation between health institutions

Kumasi, Feb. 13, GNA - An appeal has been made to health personnel in both public and private institutions to foster co-operation among themselves to help achieve the much-desired impact in health delivery in the country.

Mrs Faustina Kyei-Faried, a public health nurse at the Kumasi South Hospital made the call at a two-day workshop organised for 30 midwives, bio- statisticians, ward assistants, enrolled nurses and ward maids drawn from private clinics in the Asokwa sub-metro in Kumasi on Tuesday.

The workshop was organised by the Ghana Health Service (GHS) to update the skills of the participants in private health institutions in the sub-metro.

Mrs Kyei-Faried said looking at the Herculean task facing health personnel as a result of the exodus of doctors, nurses and paramedical staff, which had brought a lot of pressure on the few remaining, fostering co-operation between the public and private health institutions would help greatly to achieve improved health delivery.

Mr John Baffoe, a Disease Control Officer at the Kumasi South Hospital, reminded the participants that since January to March was the season for Cerebro Spinal Meningitis (CSM), care should be taken to help identify and respond quickly to cases of CSM which he noted could wipe out whole communities within a short time if its outbreak was not responded to very quickly.

He said since it was the aim of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and government to eradicate polio from the country by 2005, any form of paralysis should be referred quickly for proper investigation and control.

Mrs Victoria Agyapong, proprietor of Victoria Clinic and Maternity Home at Ayigya, lauded the GHS for organising the workshop, which she noted had helped to refresh and update their skills and knowledge in their work.

She, however, appealed to all private health institutions to join the Ghana Registered Midwives Association (GRMA) to enable them to benefit from such workshops.