Bawumia commends Iran Clinic

The Vice-President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, has inaugurated the refurbished  patients and visitors waiting area, an emergency unit and an X-ray/scan unit of Iran Clinic in Accra.

The Iran Clinic, a health facility established by the Iranian Red Crescent, which is located near the Kwame Nkrumah overpass, receives at least 300 patients daily.

Health sector contributions

Dr Bawumia lauded the contributions of the Iranian government to the health sector of Ghana, saying the clinic is contributing significantly to healthcare delivery in the country.

The vice-president also commended the selfless work of health providers such as doctors and nurses.

He stated that “it is only when one falls ill that we appreciate the work that the doctors and nurses do.”

Relationship between Ghana and Iran

Touching on the relationship between Ghana and Iran, Dr Bawumia said it dated back a long time and the clinic was one of the lasting benefits the relationship had produced.

He acknowledged the close relationship between the Ghana Red Cross Society and the Iranian Red Crescent Society and also thanked the Red Crescent for supporting the Ghana Red Cross to build a befitting headquarters.

Dr Bawumia encouraged the management of the clinic to expand to other parts of the country.

The Iran clinic

The Director of the clinic, Dr Masoud Maleki Birjandi, who conducted the vice-president round the health facility, explained that the clinic had served Ghanaians for the past 27 years.

The Iranian Red Crescent currently has health centres in over 20 countries, with Ghana’s clinic being the biggest and most active.

Ready to cooperate

The President of the Iranian Red Crescent Society, Dr Amir Mohsen Kiaeisaid, said the society was ready to cooperate with its counterpart in Ghana to expand its activities beyond health care to include education.

“In this regard, we have already supported the Ghana Red Cross Society to build an educational centre in Accra. In the near future, we hope to have a joint educational programme with the society,” he explained.

Dr Kiaeisaid said their work fundamentally involved humanity, independence, voluntarism, neutrality, impartiality, unity and universality.

Cordial ties

The Iranian Ambassador to Ghana, Dr Nosratollah Maleki, expressed the hope that the vice-president’s visit would further concretise the already cordial ties existing between the two countries and also open avenues for more assistance to the health sector in the country.

He said it had been the intention of the Red Crescent Society to extend its activities to some deprived areas of the country to provide more affordable and quality healthcare.

Red cross grateful

The President of the Ghana Red Cross Society, Dr Michael Agyekum, thanked the Iranian Red Crescent for supporting it with a multipurpose headquarters. 

He stated that the sophistication of the Iranian Red Crescent overwhelmed him; it has about 20 helicopters, 450 ambulances and about 5,000 workers at its headquarters alone.