The Effutu Muncipal Government Hospital has recorded a significant reduction maternal deaths and under five mortality.

Dr. George K. Prah, Medical Superintendent of the Hospital, announced that maternal deaths reduced from 18 in 2009 to zero in 2013, while under-five mortality also reduced from 143 in 2009 to 23 last year.

Dr Prah, who is also the acting Effutu Municipal Director of Health Services, said this at a ceremony, at which the Member of Parliament for the area, Mr. Alex Afenyo-Markin, handed over the general store and a Mother’s hostel he funded for the hospital.

The Management of the Hospital expressed appreciation to the MP for honoring his promise to reconstruct the General Store of the Hospital, which was destroyed by fire in October last year, with part of the pharmacy block and essential logistics.

The whole block, with logistics, was destroyed in a fire outbreak in October last year.

According to Dr Prah, when the fire incident occurred, the management through the media, made appeals to stakeholders, including the MP, for its restoration.

He said the MP, on inspecting the damaged store, subsequently, promised to reconstruct it.

Dr Prah said most of them perceived the promise as one of the usual “political talk”, but Mr. Afenyo-Markin had proved to be among the politicians who adhere to their promises.

He said the hospital was built in 1929, thus making it one of the oldest health facilities in the country. The less than 20 bed-capacity now has 143 beds with more than 250 staff.

The Acting Municipal Director said they had a vision of making the facility a “Hospital of Choice, offering Clinical and Non-Clinical Health Services with quality standards to the people of Effutuman and beyond.”

However, he said, because the structure was old, most of the electrical wiring systems had become exposed and posed great danger to lives and property.

Dr Prah said this electrical problem was suspected to have led to the fire.

The hospital also suffered from lack of logistics because of the fire, congestion of the Out Patients Department, and difficulty in getting an ambulance for referred cases, he said.

He appealed to stakeholders to help with the construction of an OPD complex and pledged their commitment to provide best and quality health.

Neenyi Ghartey VII, Paramount Chief of Effutu Traditional Area, who chaired the programme, called on the management of the Hospital to schedule a stakeholders’ meeting and put before them their needs, challenges and proposed solutions.