The Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) has urged the public to report any acts of extortion by their staff to the hospital management.
According to Head of Public Relations at KATH, Mr. Kwame Frimpong, KATH does not countenance such corrupt acts.
He told this reporter in reacting to allegations of extortion that the new Chief Executive Officer, Prof. Otchere Addai Mensah has put in measures to prevent issues like that.
He asked the victim to report the issues to authorities after which the hospital will take action to address it.
Information available to The Chronicle has it that a section of staff of KATH in the Ashanti regional capital of Kumasi are taking GH₡50.00 from people at the Accident and Emergency (A&E) unit in order to offer beds to patient.
This development, the paper gathered, is done by some elements at A&E unit, who are taking advantage of the lack of bed space to mount several beds and to enrich their pockets from vulnerable individuals who patronise the unit.
Narrating his harrowing experience at the largest referral health facility in Ghana to The Chronicle, a victim of the incident, name withheld, disclosed that he took his wife to KATH over the weekend and when they arrived at the A&E in the middle of the night, he was told that there was no bed at the facility, a development which got him frustrated.
He told this reporter that all this while, his wife was in pain and that owing to the frustration, he mustered courage and approached one of staff on duty and gave him GH₡50.00 to provide bed for his partner, and within a twinkle of an eye a bed was made available to his ailing partner.
“My wife was in pain and the pronouncement that there was no bed got me frustrated. This compelled me to go to one guy and give him GH₡50.00 cedis and quickly provided a bed for my wife,” he said.
He further disclosed to this paper that soon after they were provided with bed, they were asked to go and buy a malaria test kit which is free of charge from outside in the middle of the night.
According to the victim, on their next visit, he refused to give any staff on duty money and his wife was not given a bed, a development which compelled him to tell the doctor that if his wife would not be given a bed, then he would take her home and the medical officer agreed.
“In our next visit, when we reported at the A&E, I refused to pay any money to anyone and my wife was not given a bed. Out of frustration, I told the doctor that if my wife would be lying somewhere without a bed then we would go home, and the doctor responded in the affirmative.
The worried man told The Chronicle that the rot at KATH is endemic and the authorities must crack the whip on erring staff.
Meanwhile, on the unavailability of the malaria test kit, KATH PRO, Kwame Frimpong, mentioned that they are free of charge and are being given by the state, adding that the hospital had run out of the stock.
He noted that since it is free of charge, KATH does not control the stock but when it is available, they provide it to the patients.
