Market women at the Agomanya market in the Eastern Region were on Saturday, 20th June 2020 educated on the need to observe the various COVID-19 prevention protocols during their trading activities as part of efforts to avert contracting the virus.

Officials of the Narh-Bitha Hospital and Nursing College in Tema as part of its corporate social responsibilities heeded the call of the market women through the market queen, Manye Susanna Korkor Kpabitey for their intervention to curb an outbreak of the pandemic in the market, and carried out the public education on COVID-19 prevention for the market women.

The officials as part of the exercise, donated 5 veronica buckets, 400 bottles of hand sanitizer, and 400 pieces of face mask, to be placed at vantage locations in the market for easy access and use by the traders.

Director of Nursing at the Narh-Bita Hospital, Dr. Isaac Lartey Narh, and leader of the team on behalf of the medical director of the Narh-Bita Hospital and president of the Narh-Bita College, Dr. Edward Narh, as part of the education, presented the COVID-19 prevention items to the traders.

The team from the hospital and nursing college, comprising health personnel, gathered some of the market women, particularly the various market queens through whom it educated the people on how to protect themselves against infection of the deadly disease.

Dr. Isaac Lartey Narh who said the disease had “come to stay,” decried the seeming apathy to the existence of the virus, pretending that it did not exist.

As part of efforts to curb the trend, the Director of Nursing said the institution was undertaking numerous educational activities of the general public.

He insisted that the virus is real and will be with us for some time and called on the public to accept reality.

“Coronavirus is real and it’s not something that is going to varnish in two months, we’ll be living with it for some time,” he said, adding that many countries would have to brace themselves to combat its spread.

He called on the market women not to hesitate to call on them for any future assistance they may require as they were always ready to assist them.

Other officials including Mrs. Diana Coffie who is Claims Manager at the Hospital and Kwadwo Aduse Poku, Deputy Matron, took turns to underscore the need for the traders to adhere to personal hygienic practices spelled out by the President, Nana Akuffo Addo.

The items donated, they maintained were to help in the observation of the protocols and urged the market women to ensure the use of the hand sanitizers, especially during their trading activities where currency notes are exchanged.

They also encouraged the traders to extend the knowledge acquired to their patrons who buy from them.

The traders were encouraged to practice regular handwashing, use hand sanitizers, and maintain other protocols in order to save themselves and their communities from the deadly disease.

On her part, market queen of the Agomanya market, Manye Susanna Korkor Kpabitey expressed the sincere gratitude of the market women to the Narh-Bitha Hospital and Nursing College for their show of love and support for the women.

She joined the members of the foundation to appeal to other prominent Krobo citizens to come aboard and support the women.

School Health Education Programme (SHEP) Coordinator for Lower Manya Krobo, Mr. Godfred Ofoe Caesar tasked the market women to engage their wards on the need to observe the COVID-19 protocols as they return to school in the midst of the pandemic.

A cross-section of the traders interviewed appreciated the efforts of the team but appealed for more of the items and regular education on the COVID-19 pandemic.