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Ashanti Region faces shortage of beds, PPE at treatment centres
The Ghana Health Service (GHS) in the Ashanti Region has complained about shortage of beds and personal protective equipment (PPE) at treatment centres of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), making the management of cases difficult.
According to the Ashanti Regional Director of GHS, Dr Emmanuel Tenkorang, there was an urgent need to increase the number of beds in the treatment facilities considering the increasing number of recorded cases in the region which stood at 2,403.
Addressing the media here on COVID-19 situation in Ashanti, Dr Tenkorang stated that, almost all the treatment centres were full.
He said the treatment centre at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital had 18 beds, whilst the centre at Kumasi South Hospital had 20 beds.
“This means that the total number of beds we have is 38, so what we need to do is to increase the number of beds to be able to contain the increasing coronavirus cases in the region,” he said.
The Director said plans were afoot to expand Kumasi South Hospital from the existing 20 beds to 41, whilst work was ongoing at another ward for further expansion.
To support the development, he said seven beds have been secured at Suntreso Hospital and “we are also negotiating with one of our senior doctors who has decided to give us his hospital to be used as a treatment centre.”
He said when “it is finally done; we hope that we can add about 100 beds to the treatment centres making it 138 beds.”
Dr Tenkorang said the directorate had the intention of increasing the number of isolation centres in the region considering the increasing number of recorded COVID-19 cases as the region currently had a total of 207 beds in isolation centres at Ejisu and TUC in Kumasi, which were not enough.
The region has so far recorded 38 deaths, 2,403 cases, 778 recoveries, 156 people are currently in isolation and 38 people are also on admission with one in critical condition.
Dr Tenkorang appealed to the public to obey the strict adherence to the COVID-19 safety protocols, as the number of recorded cases was increasing every day in the region.
He hinted that, the continuous failure of the public’s adherence to the safety protocols would force authorities in the region to re-strategise COVID-19 safety protocol adherence.
Source: Ghanaian Times
News
UNODC partners GFA Foundation on Prison advocacy and mentorship programme
The GFA Foundation and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) have agreed to work together to advocate for anti-discrimination and the elimination of stigmatization for prisoners and prisons.
This partnership was agreed, in principle, during a meeting at the Home of Football (GFA Head Office) between the Director of the GFA Foundation and the UNODC Team led by Mr. Christoph Capelle, an Associate Expert in Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice and the Coordinator of the prison and penal reform project in Ghana.
Welcoming the Team to the Home of Football, the Director of the GFA Foundation, Mr. Malcolm Frazier Appeadu briefed the team about the GFA Foundation – Ghana Prisons Project which has covered 6 prisons across the country already.
He indicated that the Foundation is liaising with the Ghana Prisons Service to commence the second and third pillars of the project, which are the coaches and referees training programs as well as the advocacy and mentorship initiatives.
He said that the GFA Foundation will welcome partners for the execution of the second phase of the project which will include Ankaful Maximum Security Prison, Kumasi Central Prison, Sekondi Central Prison and three other prison facilities.
In his response, Mr. Christoph Capelle commended the GFA for the GFA Foundation – Ghana Prisons Project which seeks to use the power of football to promote the wellbeing, reformation, rehabilitation and reintegration of inmates of Ghana’s prisons into society.
Mr. Capelle said that UNODC is looking forward to a collaboration with the GFA Foundation on possible programs for both the medium and long term to support football and sports jobs and skills development in Ghana’s prisons.
He extended an invitation to the GFA Foundation to be part of an assessment of overall prison rehabilitation programmes including the use of sports by their international consultant at the Ankaful Maximum Security Prison.
There will be a football match and donation of footballs, sports items and equipment to the prison facility.
Present at the meeting were Mr. Kwame Koramoah, an officer at the GFA Foundation and Integrity Office, Helena Adobea Ofori, Associate Programme Officer, UNODC and Caleb Elorm Agodzo, Administrative Officer, UNODC.
It will be recalled that in 2020, The UNODC and FIFA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to tackle corruption and crime in and through sports and pledged to consider ways in which football can be used as a vehicle to strengthen youth resilience to crime and substance use through the provision of life skills training.
The MOU was renewed last year by FIFA President Gianni Infantino and UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
News
Gomoa West: NPP, NDC supporters clash over commissioning of DRIP equipment
Supporters of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) on Monday morning clashed over the commissioning of machinery for the District Road Infrastructure Project in the Gomoa West District of the Central Region.
According to Citi News sources, the conflict began when NDC supporters questioned the decision to display images of Bismark Basie Nkum, the NPP’s Gomoa West parliamentary candidate on the DRIP machinery.
This disagreement quickly escalated, almost leading to a physical altercation between the two groups.
Baisie Nkum, who doubles as the District Chief Executive (DCE) for Gomoa West, further claimed that the Member of Parliament for the area, Richard Gyan Mensah, brandished a pistol and issued threats against the NPP’s local leadership.
A viral video circulating on social media captured the DCE accusing MP Richard Gyan Mensah of pulling out a gun and threatening NPP supporters during the heated incident.
Source: Citinewsroom.com
