Rotary Club assists La General Hospital

Donations continue to pour into the La General Hospital to help it address the inflow of people who have contracted the cholera disease.

At a short ceremony at the hospital, the Rotary Club of Accra Airport District 9102 donated 28 cartons of intravenmous fluids; 10 cartons of disposable gloves; six boxes of canulas; six wellington boots; six gallons of liquid soap and 25 containers of parazone worth GHc3,920. 

The presentation, which was the second by the club, was in response to an appeal the hospital made to the public asking for support to enable it to handle the rising cases of cholera. 

As of last Tuesday, September 2, 2014, the reported cases of cholera at the hospital stood at 1,232 with 13 deaths.

The President of the Accra Airport District 9102 of the club, Mr Osei Kwame Agyeman, who spoke after the presentation ceremony, said the cholera outbreak in the Greater Accra Region was of great concern to the club. 

“It is, therefore, important under the prevailing conditions that we all join in the crusade to curb the spread of this preventable disease,” he said.

He said the club considered humanitarian assistance as a core responsibility and as such “see the request by the hospital as an obligation to which they must respond, and that is why we were here last week and are here again.”

Mr Agyeman hinted that the Accra Airport District 9102 of the Rotary Club intended to put up an Isolation Ward spacious enough to handle the growing number of cholera cases.

Gratitude

The Senior Health Service Administrator at the hospital, Mr Philip Afeti Korto, on behalf of the hospital, expressed his gratitude for the donation. He said he was particularly pleased with the disposable gloves and said the items had come at a critical time when the hospital needed them.

He praised the  members of the Accra Airport District 9102 of the Rotary Club for their persistent determination to give, as it was their second donation to the hospital within a short time.  

“You were here last week and we told you about our needs, and this time round you came big. We are grateful,” he said.

Personal hygiene

Mr Korto attributed the rising cases of cholera to the lack of personal hygiene among Ghanaians. 

He said cholera was acquired through contaminated water or food tainted with faecal matter and requested that people develop the habit of eating food while it is hot and boil water before drinking, if the source is unknown.

Early reporting

Mr Korto appealed to the public to report suspected cholera cases to the nearest health facilities. He said reporting early was critical in the treatment of the disease.

Writer’s Email: severious.dery@graphic.com.gh