We humbly seek clarity from Hon Minister for Information on 200 ICU beds for COVID 19.
ACH-PRA has cited a news item dated 28/03/2020 on Ghanaweb entitled ‘200 ICU beds ready to contain critical coronavirus cases’. We at ACH-PRA take this information with a pinch of salt because our independent credible checks across the country suggest otherwise. We would like to remind the Minister for Information, Hon Kojo Oppong Nkrumah that giving Ghanaians false hope will not help the situation at this critical moment,Hon Oppong Nkrumah should know that you cannot suppressed football into water, the reality will soon expose him and it will be too late to make amends since many lives would have been lost.
From the expert perspective, for one to say he has 100 ICU beds for coronavirus cases management the following *MUST* be present and functioning effectively with backups
- A minimum of one intensive care specialist per ICU setting
- A minimum of 400 ICU nurses (4 nurses per bed per day)
- 100 ICU patient bed with linings
- A minimum of 100 ICU ventilators
- A minimum of one blood gas analyser per hospital
- Constant supply of medical oxygen to run the ventilators
- One Suction system or machine per bed
- Trained support staff
- Consumables of all kinds
- A minimum of 4 PPEs per bed per day
As we combed around the country for the past one week, trying to assess the readiness of our ICUs in the event of a massive out break of the COVID 19, the statement of the minister for information came as a shock to us as it was very far from the truth.
Ghana currently has about 400 ICU nurses. A good number of these ICU nurses are not actively working in ICUs so calling them back will require some refresher course to sharpen them up. The number of intensive care specialists to lead the management is nothing but a disappointment. These class of nurses and doctors cannot be trained in a month to change the figures. This lack is a clear example of generational neglect by our leaders to certain key professionals in the health sector. The use of students, retired nurses and doctors will not provide us the needed results. We also advise against recalling retired staff because the information gathered about them in respect of coronavirus infection is not favourable.
The idea of flying consultants from Accra to take care of critical cases in other regions cannot be sustained when Accra and Kumasi are overwhelmed, hence, the need to re-strategize by temporally redistributing the available intensive care specialist (anaesthesiologist) across the established coronavirus ICUs. However, we would like to call on communicators not to consider patient beds without ventilator in any ICU to manage critical coronavirus cases as ICU beds.
Below are the number of ventilators per hospital. These are notable hospitals in ICU services in the country. Can the Hon minister provide further details regarding the whereabouts of the said ICU beds with ventilators for us to rectify our notes?and possibly help health professionals make referrals appropriately . We have also noted that, the pattern of government preparation to combat covid 19 mirrows the inequalities in health investment in the country between the north and south. A visit to some selected health facilities in the north demonstrated how the north has been neglected by the state in these crucial moments.
- Korle Bu: 4 ventilators
- Ridge Hospital: 5 ventilators
- Cape Coast Teaching Hospital: 4 ventilators
- Tamale Teaching Hospital: 3 ventilators
- 37 military hospital: 6 ventilators
- Legon Medical Center: 12 ventilators
- Koforidua Regional Hospital 2 ventilators
- Ho Regional Hospital: 3 ventilators
- Sunyani regional Hospital: 4 ventilators but lack humidifiers
- Wa Regional Hospital: 6 ventilators
- Duayaw Nkwanta Hospital: 2 ventilators
- Bolgatanga Regional Hospital: 1 ventilator
- Maritime Hospital: 3 ventilators
- Bank of Ghana Hospital: we do not have data but doubt if it had more the 6.
From the above data we approximately pegged our ventilators to be less than 70 across the country and it is against this backdrop that we disagree with the statement made by the Minister regarding the 200 ICU beds.
If the government has provided additional ventilators to these or other hospitals in the country, then they should provide us the list of beneficiary facilities to update our data.
Finally at this crucial moment we must allow truth to reign as it will help the ordinary citizen to simply take the prescribed precautionary measures than tickling ourselves.We must face the challenges head on.
Readers please remain calm and obey simple instructions for healthy lifestyle.
signed by:
Dr. Thomas W Anabah
Executive Director
ACH-PRA
Source: ACH-PRA
