By Rafiq Nungor ADAM
The Community Development Alliance (CDA) has donated 12 community tricycle ambulances valued at GH¢975,000 to the Upper West Regional Health Directorate and Savannah Regional Health Directorate.
Eight of the community ambulances were specifically presented to eight communities in Upper West Region to boost the healthcare delivery system.
Executive Director-CDA, Issifu Salifu Kanton, during the handover ceremony to the Upper West Regional Health Director noted that community tricycle ambulances are to support the primary healthcare delivery system by providing emergency health transportation services in the communities which need it most.
Mr. Kanton added that the community tricycle ambulances are not government funded ambulance; therefore, people should stop spreading misinformation that the ambulances were purchased by government.
“These are community ambulances and they are funded through the Stars in Global Health grant challenge, Canada. It is not a government-funded project. Unfortunately, as we are in the era of misinformation and disinformation, when the ambulances were delivered by the vendor, I think along the way some citizens saw them and made videos which they immediately put online – and people have characterised the initiative as a government project, which is not true.”
The ambulances – each costing over GH¢81,000 – will be distributed to eight beneficiary communities in Upper West Region.
The Regional Director, Dr. Damien Punguyire, on receiving the community tricycle ambulances on behalf of the Director General-Ghana Health Service, assured that the ambulances will be put to good use.
“I wish to express our gratitude to Community Development Alliance for this innovation. These community based ambulances are not coming to replace the national ambulance, that’s why you see staff of the national ambulances here with us. We are working as a team, but the innovation has come to address a critical gap within the service,” he said.
Key features of the tricycle community ambulances include a patient bed, seats for the nurse and patient caretaker and an oxygen cylinder.
