Ghana Health Service D-G tours centres at Ga East
Members of the national leadership of the Ghana Health Service have toured health centres within the Ga East Municipal Assembly, focusing on the COVID-19 vaccination campaign,promoting child health and immunisation services.
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The campaign, which coincided with the child health promotion week and African Vaccination Week, aimed to raise awareness, increase vaccination coverage and promote healthy practices within the community.
The tour was led by the Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye and accompanied by a team of health officials and community leaders. The team visited several vaccination sites including Taifa Burkina Outreach, the Abokobi Health Centre and the Church of Pentecost Agbogba outreach point to ensure equitable access to vaccines for all eligible individuals.
During the inspection, Dr Kuma-Aboagye interacted with parents, caregivers and healthcare workers to gain insights and discuss the importance of routine immunisations, nutrition and preventive healthcare measures for children.
Rationale
In an interview, Dr Kuma-Aboagye said the objective was to focus on assessing welfare services provided by child health services which included weighing, growth assessment, vaccinations, education and counselling for mothers and their children.
He said attention was given to the COVID-19 vaccination campaign to fully vaccinate 20.7 million individuals, equivalent to the target population. He said currently, 57 per cent of the population was fully vaccinated, with 71 per cent receiving at least one dose.
“So this is quite encouraging and we believe that we are going to exceed our targets to help us to achieve our aim,” he said. Dr Kuma-Aboagye noted that some parents were not adequately utilising the child health records book which contained essential information about their child's health and development.
About COVID-19, Dr Kuma-Aboagye said efforts were being made to combat vaccine hesitancy by emphasising the safety and efficacy of vaccines. He added that vaccination teams were being deployed to reach individuals in various communities and acknowledged the importance of accessibility in vaccine uptake.
He gave the assurance that the public would come out with a responsive mechanism to address any concerns, and thereby, urged Ghanaians to prioritise vaccination to safeguard themselves and their communities.
Dr Kuma-Aboagye commended the dedication of healthcare workers and pledged continued support from the Ghana Health Service to enhance their capacity and resources.
Commitment
The Surveillance Officer of the WHO, Dr Michael Adjabeng, on behalf of the country representative, said they are committed to collaborating with partners such as UNICEF to support the government in ensuring comprehensive COVID vaccination and child welfare services.
He highlighted the importance of robust coverage and expressed confidence in the country's protection against the virus. Assessing the ongoing activities for the African Vaccination Week and Child Health Promotion Week, he acknowledged the timely delivery of services to children and the quality of care provided.