Kumasi, July 29, GNA - The Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in partnership with the Nursing Department of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology will start a Bachelor of Science in Emergency Nursing programme.

Professor Ohene Adjei, Chief Executive of KATH, said this was part of a strategy to achieve optimal operation of its state-of-the-art Accident and Emergency Centre.

He said all was set for the take off of the programme in August this year.

Professor Ohene Adjei was addressing the opening session of a three-day mid-year performance review meeting of the Hospital.

He said initial admission would stand at 30 students out Of which 15 of the number would be sponsored by the Hospital.

He said they were also collaborating with the Himalayan Eye Project and USAID to set up a modern eye centre to train eye specialists for the West African Sub-Region.

Professor Ohene Adjei spoke of a number of projects implemented to improve conditions at the facility and mentioned among these, the renovation of wards and consulting rooms of the hospital's psychiatric block.

It will also cater for the expansion of the water reservoir and inter-connectivity and automation of a stand-by power plant for the emergency centre.

"This is in addition to repairing the existing two boreholes and the drilling of two additional ones to improve the water supply situation in the hospital," he added.

Professor Ohene Adjei said during the period under review, the hospital finalized a new five-year strategic plan (2010-2014) to reposition the facility as a leading tertiary healthcare service provider in the sub-region.

On the clinical front, he said Out-Patient Department attendance at the polyclinic for the first half of the year saw a total of 76,497 cases.

They also performed 13,992 surgeries during the period.

Physiotherapy services registered 10,688, cases and the number of supervised deliveries was to 7,187.

Professor Ohene Adjei put the recorded emergency cases at 18,000 which was almost double of last year's figure for the same period.

He commended the board and management for their efforts at addressing the many challenges facing the hospital including the inadequate land space for expansion.

Ageing equipment and infrastructure and the delayed children and maternity block project, which after 36 years remains uncompleted were other challenges facing the hospital.