Akandoh: Only 5% of health facilities have full medical equipment

The Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has revealed that only five percent of health facilities in Ghana currently have the full range of medical equipment required to provide quality healthcare services to patients.

According to the minister, the poor state of medical equipment across the country remains one of the major challenges confronting the health sector, affecting the ability of many hospitals and clinics to operate efficiently and deliver adequate care.

Akandoh made the remarks while addressing journalists after touring the Mother and Child Hospital in Kasoa.

The visit formed part of his assessment of healthcare facilities and ongoing government efforts aimed at improving health service delivery nationwide.

During the interaction, the Health Minister acknowledged the difficult condition of Ghana’s healthcare infrastructure, particularly with regard to the availability of essential medical equipment in hospitals, clinics, and primary healthcare centres.

“The equipment status in this country is very, very poor, and that is what I inherited. So, we have one strategy for dealing with the primary health care facilities.

“We have bought a number of quantities of health equipment and hospital equipment that we are distributing across the length and breadth of this country.

“So we have started, we cannot do all at once, but we have started, and I think that is something. In fact, the statistics show that only 5 percent of health facilities have the full complement of equipment to deliver their work.”

He also noted that a significant quantity of hospital and medical equipment has already been procured and is currently being distributed to health facilities across the country to help bridge the gap and improve healthcare delivery.

Source: Citi News