He also called on husbands to join the campaign to ensure good health of pregnant women before and after delivery in the area, to help do away with the unfortunate situation where expectant mothers lost either their own lives or those of their babies, or both, during delivery.

Making the remarks at the 2016 Annual Health Performance Review meeting at Mankranso, he said the health directorate alone could not do the education, calling on religious bodies and opinion leaders to be involved in the campaign for regular medical check-ups for pregnant women.

Call for support

Mr Bedzrah also called for support from all to make meaningful contributions to improve conditions at the needy health facilities as the district, and Ghana as a developing country, moved to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on health.

The district director expressed concern over the fact that a number of pregnant women in the district were reluctant to visit health facilities regularly for checkups, resulting in maternal deaths and infant mortalities; noting that it was unfortunate that the 2016 statistics on maternal death and infant mortality was not ready.

He also noted that the Mankranso Government Hospital, which was built in 1989, would need expansion to accommodate more patients.
He said the hospital had been serving as a referral centre for patients in the area, especially accident victims on the Kumasi-Sunyani and Kumasi-Tepa roads.

Congestion

The health director expressed worry that due to lack of space, some children admitted to the hospital had to sleep together with their mothers on the same bed.

Moreover, he said, health facilities at nearby Pokukrom, Sabronum, Wioso and Mpaaso were also facing similar challenges as far as provision of health care was concerned in the district.

He, however, called on the government, able-bodied individuals, groups and civil society organisations (CSOs) to come to the aid of the district to expand health facilities in the area.

Mr Bedzrah also noted that new health facilities had recently opened and were operating at Kunsu and Aponaposo, among other communities, but lacked the required medical equipment to operate.