The  Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital in the Western Region is using its internally generated funds (IGF) to monitor COVID-19 patients who are quarantined or self-isolated in their respective homes.

This move has resulted in a big drain in the hospital’s coffers.

The Medical Director, Dr. Joseph Yambil disclosed this to our reporter who visisted the hospital to find out some of the challenges confronting the staff who are the frontline workers in the fight against the deadly Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19), and the number of cases so far recorded.

He said the fuelling of vehicles at the health facility to enable the nurse to travel and check on the patients was becoming too much because the  Regional Hospital depended on its internally generated funds (IGF)  to monitor these patients.

The Medical Director has ,therefore, appealed to benevolent institutions, Non- Governmental Organisations into health and the COVID-19 Fund to assist ENRH to continue to fight the  pandemic.

He said that the hospital last year had to refer very severe cases to Accra but managed the less severe cases at home.

He lauded GIZ, a German organisation which came to assist the hospital at the Communicable Disease Unit (CDU) referred to as  Intensive Care Unit (ICU) which made it possible for  the hospital  to admit COVID-19 cases in the later part of 2020.

Dr. Tambil disclosed that the OPD from January to March this year recorded 314 COVID-19 cases out of a total of 372 cases reported at the hospital.

He gave the breakdown as follows : January  136 cases, February 102 and March  76 cases at the OPD.

He said the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) where COVID-19 patients were admitted also recorded 22 cases in January, February 20  and March  16 cases thus bringing the total COVID-19 cases recorded between January and March to 372.

He said the OPD cases were people on self-isolation or those who had quarantined themselves at their various homes but were religiously monitored by the  health officials

He said the second wave saw the numbers going up in early January 2021 where the CDU admitted 22 patients, lost three and discharged 19 while  20 patients were recorded at the ICU and five  lost their lives.

He said as of  March 22, 2021, 16 patients were admitted and two died adding “no case has been referred to Accra this time round except a corporate client whose company requested for a transfer to South Africa where the mother company is”.

Dr Tambil said the hospital’s biggest challenge was how to get enough  resources to manage the ICU as patients had to be fed well round the clock and that since they started admitting COVID-19 patients no pesewa  had been given  to support the fight against the disease.

The Medical Director said the internally generated funds and other finances were far stretched as such corporate institutions should support the health facility in terms of PPEs, consumables and other medications.

Photo 0071 shows Dr Joseph Tambil, Medical Director of Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital.

From Peter Gbambila, Effia Nkwanta