Chief Executive Officer of the National Ambulance Service, Dr George Kojo Owusu, has announced that 400 new ambulances and 500 medical motorbikes will be procured.
According to the CEO, processes are underway to procure 400 new ambulances and 500 medical motorbikes to improve service delivery.
He further highlighted that the ambulances will come in various categories which includes, “pediatric ambulances, basic life support ambulances, advanced life support ambulances, critical care ambulances, and ICU ambulances, among others”.
The CEO further explained that the motorbikes will help personnel navigate traffic during emergencies.
Dr George Kojo Owusu disclosed that procurement processes have been initiated to acquire the fleet, but a specific timeline cannot be provided.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, March 2, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Ambulance Service, Dr George Kojo Owusu, explained, “As we speak, we are at the decision process, and procurement of that magnitude of ambulances takes time and involves a lot of negotiations, so timelines cannot be given now. When we get the timelines, we will make them available to you”.
In related news, Professor Titus Beyuo, Board Chairman of Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital and Member of Parliament for Lambussie, has called for the review of the Ambulance Service Act.
The MP argued that the current scoop and run needs to be changed for paramedics to be able to provide basic health care needs in transit.
According to Prof Beyuo, paramedics in Ghana will be able to save many lives if they can run a simple IV line to give patients fluid during transit.
Speaking on the floor of parliament, Professor Titus Beyuo stated, “ I will conclude by saying our Ambulance Service, by its act and by its function, may need to be reviewed. Currently, they do scoop and run. What it means is that at an accident scene, they can pick you up, but they cannot even set a simple IV line to give you fluid, this patient who was being moved from Hospital to Hospital if a simple saline was running, this patient could have survived.
The minority leader mentioned his BP at the beginning of Korle Bu when they checked the BP in the ambulance monitor, and it had come down to 84 56, which is someone who is just about dying. So if they could at least set a line and run some fluid in transit, a lot patient will survive. The model that only allows them to scope and run must be changed, and their training must be upgraded so that we have some paramedics who can provide some basic care”.
He further appealed to Health workers to change their attitude, saying, “Attitude is our biggest problem; all of this will not change if the attitude does not change. I am standing on this to appeal to my colleague Health workers, look at that next patients it could be you, it could be your father or your mother. It does not have to be another doctor calling you before you create a bed and accept the patient”.
Also, Professor Titus Beyuo has announced that the Health Minister is working on a National Integrated Bed Management and Referral System that will tell the categories of beds that are available in a particular hospital in real time.