Accra, Feb.13, GNA – The Holy Family Hospital at Techiman in the Bono East Region has achieved a major medical milestone, becoming a Level-Four SafeCare-rated health institution.
The Hospital had also been fully accredited by the Health Facility Regulatory Agency (HeFRA) as a secondary-level health facility.
The College of Physicians and Surgeons has also accredited it as a centre for specialist training of Members and Fellows of the College, therefore, contributing to critical human resource development for the country’s health sector.
“This recognition affirms the hospital’s disposition and commitment to delivering secondary or referral-level healthcare that meets international standards for quality to the people in the Bono Region and its environs,” Mr Christopher Akaanbonaab, the Hospital Administrator, told the media in Accra on Monday.
Therefore, there was no need for the people to travel to Kumasi or Accra for specialist-level service in obstetrics, gynecology, pediatrics, and surgical treatment, he said.
Mr Akaanbonaab credited the SafeCare quality improvement certification programme with the ability to spur enhancements in quality standards and protocols, leading to the Hospital’s elevation by the College of Physicians and Surgeons.
He highlighted the facility’s journey, dating back to its inception in 1954 as a health-post managed by medical missionaries, to its current status as a secondary facility and a centre of excellence in healthcare delivery.
He emphasised the benefits of the accreditation towards lifting the facility’s image and empowering it to train medical staff in the region.
That, Mr Akaanbonaab said, would promote the decentralisation of healthcare professionals’ development, ensure equitable distribution of human resource in the health sector, leading to the overall improvement in healthcare service delivery.
“We currently have accreditation for training in obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, and surgery.”
“This is an opportunity to contribute to critical human resource development for the health sector of our country, and we are honoured to be part of it.”
He expressed the hospital’s commitment to maintaining and enhancing its quality of care through continuous professionalism to attain SafeCare’s level-five status.
“Level 4 out of 5 means we have one more step to go. We still recognise that there is a lot more work to be done,” the Administrator said.
“First, we have to maintain this current rating and more importantly, to improve upon it and get to the highest rating, which is Level 5.”
In the face of the dwindling number of health professionals in rural communities, Mr. Akaanbonaab was of the firm conviction that the idea of decentralisation of medical training in the country would help improve the current situation.
Dr Peter Yeboah, the Executive Director, Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG), described the upgrade as monumental since it would pave the way for the training of more health professionals to address healthcare challenges at resource-constrained areas.
“To us, it’s not only monumental, it is so much a vital instrument for training specialists at the peripheral level,” he said.
“We’ll be able to attract and retain specialists who will be trained as part of the localisation and decentralisation efforts to ensure that quality healthcare services are spread to the peripheral ends.”
The current status of the facility as a referral centre also makes it the first CHAG hospital to be accredited by the College to train specialists in paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, surgery, and internal medicine.
It would give meaning to the decentralisation policy of the College of Physicians and Surgeons, which aligned very well with Ghana’s quest to achieving the Universal Health Coverage, Yeboah noted.
He explained that the concept of decentralisation in training Members and Fellows of the College had long been an objective of the College of Physicians and Surgeons.
“And so, after rigorous assessment, the Holy Family Hospital has been accredited to train fellows.”
The hospital authorities are enthusiastic about providing globally standardised healthcare services and equipping healthcare professionals with internationally accepted skills, aligning with Ghana’s goal of achieving universal health coverage.
The facility has imbibed and leveraged the ambition of SafeCare, which is to create a global platform of organisations and people willing to pursue innovative approaches to improve clinical quality.
This it does by using transformative digital solutions to challenge the status quo and strengthen confidence in the healthcare system.
GNA