Civil Society Organisations in the health sector have painted a gloomy picture of Ghana’s coronavirus situation, warning that the country’s health system could be overwhelmed in the coming weeks.

The Ghana Coalition of NGOs in Health has said although the government started its anti-coronavirus policies late, initial decisions in March were laudable, however, recent decisions do not inspire confidence.

Dr Gabriel Benarkuu, Chairman of the Coalition of NGOs in Health told Ghanaweb on Friday, July 3, 2020, that government’s decision to adopt the new World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines on the discharge of coronavirus, for instance, may spell doom for country’s health sector.

“Government is releasing people after two or three weeks. I am not praying for that but in in the next two to three weeks we will all see how our health system will be messed up,” he said.

COVID-19 scare

The caution to government is coming at a time when COVID-19 scare has hit the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP).

Reports indicate that the number of high-profile government officials contracting the virus is increasing with some fatalities having been recorded.

Former NPP General Secretary, Sir John died on Wednesday, July 1, 2020, at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital after contracting COVID-19. He is the second government official to die of COVID-19 after Mayor of the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly, K.K. Sam.



Another big shot, Peter Mac Manu, NPP 2016 campaign manager is at the Korle Bu ICU battling the virus. Also, Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Carlos Ahenkorah, has contracted the disease.

Speaking to GhanaWeb, Dr Benarkuu said, “If we have critical cases of about 100 – that is people who need to be on ventilators – our health system will be frustrated. This because our health system will be centred in only Kumasi and Accra…. And that is how the system will start breaking down.

“When we are recording deaths because our health system is not able to support the infected persons, at this point, the health managers themselves will be exposed to dangers and they will start making mistakes and they will also be dying.”

Dr Benarkuu and the Coalition of NGOs want the government to establish decentralise a COVID-19 Control Programme. This recommendation to the Ghana Health Service is the best advice with the current state of affairs.

“Ghana Health Service should just look for focal persons in every district to handle COVID-19 at the district level. The virus is already there. It is in all the regions, it is in all the districts…but test kits are not available.

“The only way to deal with this virus in the medium to long term is that we should have a control programme, so that we have a National Manager, a Regional Manager, and we have a District Manager. And all these people will be collaborating the Ghana Health Service to be able to manage it,” Dr Benarkuu stated.

According to him with the country’s increasing case count, a decentralised system will be better than “having a small group in Accra that is trying to control the situation in the whole country.”

Support

Dr Gabriel Benarkuu and the Coalition of NGOs in the Health sector also want the government to continue listening to the relevant stakeholders and get the critical support it needs in tackling the disease.

“In March, the government was much more accommodating the views of Ghanaians – experts, communities, traditional leaders, religious bodies. But in May, government…changed, and so people have withdrawn.

“You notice that the traditional authorities were playing critical role, now they have withdrawn. You notice that the religious bodies were playing critical role, praying for the Presidency and Ghanaians and now they have withdrawn and now they are attacking.

“You notice that the Ghana Medical Association that was in support of moves by the government when they were taking their views on programmes but you notice that in June and now in July they have withdrawn and have started advocating and arguing with government,” he said.

Dr Benarkuu has also advised the government to begin procuring more ventilators, at least five for each regional hospital and upgrade districts hospitals.

Ghana’s Coronavirus cases have risen again to 18,630, marking 496 new recordings – as of Thursday, July 2, 2020

This was announced by the Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye at a press briefing held at the Information Ministry on Thursday.