The lack of a dedicated maternity block coupled with inadequate beds, has compelled management of the St. Anne’s Hospital in Damongo to admit patients to the floor.
Appropriately 10 to 12 patients are admitted to the floor on daily basis which according to management is derailing efforts at achieving zero maternal and child mortality
Patients and their relatives lament that the situation is frustrating.
Samira Amadu, is a patient’s relative, who brought a patient but was admitted to the floor because the beds were full.
“I brought my patient here in the morning but because they were no beds we were delayed to the afternoon yet we still didn’t get a bed so she was admitted to the floor”
“People walk around anyhow and patients are also lying on the floor. This is dangerous for their health,” she stated.
Hospital challenges
The Saint Anne’s Catholic Hospital in Damongo, formerly known as West Gonja Hospital is a primary healthcare facility operated by the Catholic church under the Christian Heallth Association of Ghana-CHAG.
The hospital serves as the biggest referral centre in the western part of the Savannah region with various specialties, including emergency, maternity, surgery, and dental care.
However, inadequate infrastructure has been a major challenge affecting quality healthcare delivery despite intervention by government and other partners
The absence of a dedicated maternity block, combined with insufficient beds, is adversely affecting maternal and child care.
Medical Superintendent of the hospital Nelson Agboadoh laments, the lack of a dedicated maternity block is affecting healthcare.
“This is the only referral center around the regional capital and people come in everyday. Our maternity ward was initially designed to serve as a theatre but we have converted it into a ward because we don’t have a dedicated maternity ward “
“We can only admit 15 people to the beds so when we have more pregnant women coming in, we only have the option of admitting them to the floor.”
In April this 2025, the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health, during a visit to the St. Anne’s Hospital, emphasized the need for the government to ensure equitable distribution of resources across all health facilities.
They stressed that this should apply regardless of whether the facilities are government-owned or managed by other organizations such as Christian Heallth Association of Ghana -CHAG.
Ghana has a hospital bed deficit, with a ratio of approximately 0.9 beds per 1,000 people, which is significantly below the World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommendation of 5 beds per 1,000 people.
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