Breman Asikuma Catholic Hospital gets new maternity ward
A maternity ward with the capacity for 40 beds has been inaugurated at the Our Lady of Grace Catholic Hospital in Breman Asikuma in the Central Region.
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The facility is an initiative by the Sisters of Charity of St Anne, a non-governmental organisation; the Cape Coast Archdiocese of the Catholic Church and the management of the hospital.
Funding for the project was provided by Anesvad of Spain through the Ghana Health Foundation.
The building has delivery suites and maternity recovery wards, doctors’ consulting rooms, offices and kitchenettes.
A two-storey canteen and hospitality block was also inaugurated.
Maternity ward capacity
The Medical Superintendent of the Our Lady of Grace Catholic Hospital, Dr Francis Bentil, said for the past four years the hospital had conducted between 2,600 and 3,000 deliveries, out of which between 500 and 590 were by caesarean section.
He said with those figures, it was obvious that the original bed capacity of the maternity ward was not enough to effectively meet its requirement for smooth operations.
He said the contract for the construction of the maternity block was signed between Anesvad and the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Cape Coast in 2015.
He commended all persons and groups who had the interest of the hospital at heart for their support which had ensured that the facility was completed on schedule.
Stillbirth challenge
He said stillbirths continued to be a challenge for the facility and blamed the problem on late referrals of patients from smaller health facilities to the hospital.
According to him, the highest number of stillbirth cases recorded by the hospital was 102 in 2013, adding that that figure had reduced to 48 in 2015.
The medical superintendent said that was achieved largely by embarking on advocacy regarding the need for expectant mothers to report early to hospital.
The Catholic Metropolitan Archbishop of Cape Coast, the Most Rev. Mathias Nketsiah, said the role the Catholic Church was playing through its health institutions was in furtherance of the healing ministry of Jesus Christ.
He said the church would continue to partner the government in the provision of quality health care for the people.
The Director of the Catholic Health Services (CHS), Rev. Father Daniel Neyoh, said the church had five hospitals strategically placed in the regions to provide quality health care for people in remote parts of the country.
A representative of Anesvad, Mr Alfonso Noboa, expressed gratitude to the community for its support towards the success of the project.
For his part, the Omanhen of the Breman Asikuma Traditional Area, Nana Amoakwa Boadu VIII, commended the management of the hospital for the remarkable improvement in the hospital and pledged to work together with the people to ensure that it achieved further growth.
