Gold Fields supports Tarkwa Municipality to combat COVID-19
Gold Fields Ghana Tarkwa Mine has presented personal protective equipment (PPE) and other health delivery items to the Ghana Health Service in the Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipality of the Western Region.
The items include 3,500 pairs of gloves, 20,000 pieces of pocket-size hand sanitisers, 1,200 large-size hand sanitisers, 8,000 pieces of surgical masks, 7,000 of N90 masks and 1,500 pieces of protective gowns.
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The rest are 8,000 pieces of sample collection kits, 180 pairs of Wellington boots, 80 pieces of safety goggles, 60 pieces of macintosh-aprons, 70 hand-held non-contact infrared thermometer and 60 Veronica buckets.
The company said it had also placed an order for two new ambulances for the New Tarkwa and the Apinto hospitals in the municipality to help boost the fight against COVID-19 and ensure general healthcare delivery in the area.
Request from health directorate
The General Manager of Gold Fields Tarkwa Mine, Mr Stephen Osei-Bempah, who led a team to make the presentation, said the donation was in response to a request by the municipal health directorate to help it halt the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr Osei-Bempah said the company, which operated in the municipality, received the request for support from the health directorate to help in its preparedness towards any eventuality.
“The items requested were immediately sourced and procured to help the municipality hospital take care of its hosts and protect staff members to deliver.
“In these critical moments, there is the need to support the fight against COVID-19 to ensure that our host community does not record any case and also have its preparedness up to date,” he said.
He indicated that the funds to purchase the PPE were from Tarkwa Mine’s share of the company’s $400,000 committed to the prevention of infection and spread of COVID-19.
Touching on the new ambulances, the General Manager said it was a commitment made on behalf of the Gold Fields Foundation, saying “in view of the urgent need for the ambulance by the Municipal Committee on COVID-19, the Tarkwa Mine has decided to fast-track the purchase of the two.”
Ready for COVID-19 combat
The Municipal Health Director, Mr Emmanuel Affelkum, lauded the good cooperation between industry and the public sector against the pandemic and other ailments.
He said so far 32 samples had been picked up from the municipal for testing and from the results, 24 had come out as negative.
The health director further indicated that arrangements had been made to send additional samples to Accra for testing.
He said as a proactive measure, the health directorate had prepared a facility well ahead of time to handle any case while soliciting for support, and described the support from the mining company as prompt.
“I must say that the support from Gold Fields will thus help us position ourselves well as healthcare providers to deal with reported cases in the municipality,” he said.
The Municipal Chief Executive, Mr Gilbert Kenneth Asmah, who received the items on behalf of the hospital, commended Gold Fields for the prompt response.