Residents of remote farming communities in the Chamba East Electoral Area of the Nanumba North Municipality in the Northern Region are expected to have easier access to healthcare following the inauguration of a new Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compound at Nasongdo.
The facility is expected to spare residents, particularly pregnant women and children, the difficult journeys to Chamba or Bimbilla, the municipal capital, to seek medical attention.
The beneficiary communities include Nasongdo, Tigbando Bengulbu, Kabulkora, Mangoase, Danbado Ukalnjabondo, and Biyundo.
For some women, those journeys have come at a high cost.
Nsanyan Donkor, a mother of four, recounted how she lost her third pregnancy after failing to reach a health facility in time because of the distance and poor road conditions.
By the time she arrived at a health facility at Chamba for assistance, it was too late to save the pregnancy.
She expressed gratitude to the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for addressing the healthcare needs of women in the area, saying the new facility would make medical services more accessible to residents.
The Assembly member for the Chamba East Electoral Area, Jagri Ifegal Caleb, said the absence of a nearby health facility and the poor road network had contributed to deaths, injuries and miscarriages in the area.
He recalled the death of a pregnant woman two years ago who suffered excessive blood loss while being transported to a health facility and died before she could receive medical attention.
Mr Caleb said the new CHPS compound would bring healthcare services closer to residents and help reduce the risk of preventable maternal deaths and pregnancy losses.
Government's commitment
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony at Nasongdo, the Northern Regional Minister, Ali Adolf John, said the facility was part of efforts to extend healthcare services to people in hard-to-reach communities.
He said Nasongdo was chosen because of its strategic location and its potential to serve surrounding communities.
According to the minister, the government directive guiding the utilisation of the District Assemblies Common Fund under President John Dramani Mahama's administration required every assembly to construct at least two CHPS compounds annually.
The Nasongdo facility, he said, was among the interventions intended to improve access to essential healthcare.
Mr Adolf also highlighted the government's Free Primary Healthcare Programme, saying its success would depend on the commitment of health professionals and the cooperation of community members.
He commended nurses and other health workers who had accepted postings to hard-to-reach communities, describing their service as a demonstration of patriotism and commitment to national development.
Expanding healthcare services
The Municipal Health Director, Francis Atiabgo, said the expansion of CHPS compounds would complement the Free Primary Healthcare Programme.
He disclosed that only 21 of the municipality's 43 electoral areas had CHPS compounds, leaving 22 without such facilities.
The municipal assembly was constructing additional compounds to extend healthcare coverage to more communities, he said.
"Last year, we inaugurated two CHPS compounds and this year, we are inaugurating additional ones.
We hope that, in the coming years, we will be able to ensure that almost all the electoral areas are covered by CHPS compounds," he said.
Mr Atiabgo said the Nasongdo facility would provide clinical consultations, outpatient department (OPD) services, public health interventions and delivery services.
A midwife would soon be posted to the compound to provide maternal healthcare, including antenatal care and delivery services.
The arrangement is expected to reduce the need for pregnant women to travel long distances for such care.
The MCE, Abdul Samed Hamza, urged residents to help maintain the facility so it could continue serving their healthcare needs.
He also appealed to residents of Nasongdo and neighbouring communities to support the health personnel who would be posted there and create a welcoming environment for them.
