Tamale, April 23, GNA – Total Life Enhancement Centre Ghana (TOLEC GH), a mental health advocacy Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) based in the Northern Region, has reiterated the call on the public to desist from stigmatising individuals who had been infected with the COVID-19 in their communities.
It said: “We do not have to point fingers at COVID-19 patients or call them names related to the pandemic, because it will affect them psychologically. We should rather embrace them in our communities”.
Mr Peter Mintir Amadu, the Executive Director of TOLEC GH, made the call when Mental Health Advocacy Foundation (MHAF), in partnership with TOLEC GH and Kesmi FM Morning Show crew, donated gallons of liquid soap to the Out-Patients Department of the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Hospital in Tamale to support the response against COVID-19.
“When a COVID-19 patient feels stigmatised, he or she may not open up for management and treatment, and by so doing spreads the virus gradually within communities, which could cause havoc for us as a nation,” he noted.
Mr Amadu, therefore, advised the citizenry to stop the stigma to help build self-esteem in victims and facilitate the fight against the virus.
“Let us stop the stigma and accept victims in our societies so as to motivate them to educate the rest of us on the importance of staying safe from the virus, and I think that will be a great step in fighting the disease,” he added.
Mr Stephen Asante, the Director of MHAF, urged the public to rigorously abide by the preventive protocols by the Ghana Health Service, the World Health Organisation and other health experts, adding that it was the only remedy for stopping the spread of the virus in communities.
Pastor Ekao K. Amouzou, Director at the SDA Hospital in Tamale, expressed gratitude to the organisations for their support and said the items would complement the Hospital’s efforts in responding to the pandemic.
He appealed to other entities, corporate institutions, and individuals to support the Hospital with the needed equipment to enhance operations and effective response against the virus.
GNA