Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has inaugurated a state-of-the-art Catheterization Laboratory facility at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, in Accra, valued at some US$1 million.
The facility, which is the most advanced catheterization laboratory in the country and its accompanying big detector, dyna CT and roadmap software and 3D workstation – essential for achieving accurate and effective minimally invasive treatments – was procured and funded by the Bank of Ghana.
This follows an appeal by the Vice President for the bank to consider acquiring such essential medical equipment as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Dr. Bawumia observed that to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC), there is the need to build a safer and healthier future for all; strengthen health systems to ensure they are equitable, resilient, and capable of meeting everyone’s needs.
To this end, he said Ghana has always been committed to attaining the Sustainable Development Goal Declaration, principles of the African Union Agenda 2063, Global Action Plan for Healthy Lives and Well-Being.
“To attain this objective, our government in the last six years has prioritized the health sector and implemented a number of policies to strengthen healthcare delivery in Ghana,” he added.
The Vice President noted that the remit of the Teaching Hospital mandates them to focus on the delivery of high-quality advanced specialized care to the citizenry.
“This, I believe when scaled up, will position Ghana as a medical tourism hub for the West African sub-region.
“A key challenge we have recognized in positioning Ghana as a medical tourism hub has been the unavailability of critical sub-specialists in the various disciplines and critical diagnostics equipment. High-quality catheterization labs such as the one we are commissioning today will support the treatment of our citizens with various non-communicable diseases,” he stated.
Currently, Ghana is the only country in the sub region/West Africa offering advanced minimally invasive endovascular treatments for conditions such as brain aneurysms.
A Catheterization Lab is a valuable asset for any country and a good addition to the overall healthcare infrastructure of Ghana. By investing in such advanced medical facilities, Dr. Bawumia observed that Ghana can attract and retain skilled medical professionals, improve the training of local doctors and allied health personnel, and enhance the quality of care provided to patients.
Also speaking at the programme, the Chief Executive Officer of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr. Opoku Ware Ampomah, said the management of the hospital has been working assiduously to acquire, maintain and improve upon existing facilities, with investments into various aspects of the healthcare space through strategic partnerships.
“This investment by the Bank of Ghana in sponsoring the full cost of the Catheterization Lab is a case in point,” he added.
He said this will greatly enhance their capabilities to provide cardiac catheterisation, stenting for various conditions and emergency treatment of strokes and thromboembolic phenomena and other life-saving interventions.
