USAID supports Ghana with health equipment
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Focus Health Project (FRHP) on Wednesday handed over medical equipment worth $800,000 to the Ghana Health Service for distribution to health facilities in the Greater Accra Region.
The support is to assist government to reduce child and maternal mortality rates in the country. The rates stand at 82 per 1,000 live births for child mortatlity and 451 per 100,000 for maternal mortality.
The equipment includes infant incubators, stethoscope, and blood pressure apparatus, delivery sets, weighing scales, lights and autoclaves.
The rest are examination tables, patient monitors, blood bank fridges, convertible beds and vaccine refrigerators.
Beneficiary hospitals include Achimota, Ridge, Princess Louis Marie, La, and the Osu Government Maternity Home and some Community Based Health Planning Services (CHPS) Compounds in the region.
Dr Edward Bonku, Chief of Party, FRHP, said the equipment would benefit facilities in the region to improve maternal, child and reproductive health, HIV and AIDs, malaria prevention and treatment needs of residents.
He said it was also to lighten the burden of facilities with high case loads.
Greater Accra Regional Minister, Mr. Julius Debrah who received the equipment on behalf of the region, commended FRHP and urged them to help in the training of technicians to maintain the equipment.
He also urged FRHP to review and extend the project which is in its final stage to help meet the growing population needs of the region.
In a statement read on her behalf, Dr Linda Vanotoo, Greater Accra Regional Health Director, expressed her appreciation to the FRHP for helping to turn around the health fortunes of the region.
The USAID/FRHP will, in 2013, donate 2.4 million dollars to three focus regions (Greater Accra, Central and Western) through a four-year plan worth 4.6 million dollars.
It is to improve the inventory of life saving medical equipment at all levels of the health system in the region, to build stronger health system through the provision of training performance based grants and support to improve the quality of service delivery management of health facilities, drugs supply and health information systems.
Source: GNA