The Upper East Region’s leading advocate, Dr. Emmanuel Akatibo, for the building of a dialysis center, has reminded residents of the need to continue donating to the construction of a dialysis center in the region.
Dr. Akatibo stated that renal failure and the necessity for hemodialysis are not exclusive to the wealthy. Many people cannot afford the biweekly travel to Tamale, the Northern Regional Capital, because the region lacks a dialysis center.
He spoke to Mark Smith on A1 Radio’s Day Break Upper East Show.
“We started recording a number of kidney failure cases. Because we don’t have a dialysis centre to support these patients, we had to refer most of them to Tamale, and a lot of them couldn’t go because of the cost and the inconvenience. They had to travel to Tamale two to three times a week to get hemodialysis, which was inconvenient for them. Some of them even had to stop working, and some of them had to relocate to Tamale or even Accra to have easy access to hemodialysis. Initially, we thought these were just a few numbers, but we realised that the numbers were increasing and it was no longer true that dialysis was meant for the rich only. We had a lot of people who needed it to help them live a bit longer,” he explained.
Meanwhile, the Talensi District Assembly has redeemed its pledge of Ghc5,000 towards the establishment of a dialysis centre at the Upper East Regional Hospital. An unnamed representative of the Assembly is said to have added Ghc 1,000 to the pledge.
This came to light when the lead advocate for the establishment of the centre spoke to A1 Radio’s Mark Smith.
“Actually, the Talensi District Assembly has redeemed their pledge of Ghs 5000.00 earlier. In fact, they were the first among the assemblies to redeem their pledge. An additional Ghc 1000.00 was given by the person who represented them during the launch.”
“The remaining assemblies, including the Regional Coordinating Council, are yet to redeem theirs. I made a follow up to the regional coordinators yesterday so they could assist us with the remaining assemblies. They also pledge to pay theirs soon,” he said.
Additionally, the Bolgatanga Municipal Assembly, under the leadership of Rex Asanga, has presented a cheque worth Ghc5,000 to fulfil an earlier pledge made towards the establishment of a dialysis centre in the Upper East Region.
Source: A1radioonline.com|101.1MHz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Ghana
