Ga East hospital lacks oxygen for COVID-19 patients

Ghana Infectious Disease Center

• Oxygen at Ga East Hospital is depleted

• Dr Oliver-Commey noted that the facility’s intensive care unit for COVID-19 critical patients is full

• He warned the public to adhere to COVID-19 protocols

Dr Joseph Oliver-Commey, Acting Director of the Ghana Center for Infectious Diseases (GIDC) revealed that the intensive care unit (ICU) for critical COVID-19 patients at the facility is full and currently lacking. oxygen.

He told Asaase Radio in an interview monitored by GhanaWeb that health practitioners are struggling to keep COVID-19 admitted and welcome new ones.

Dr Oliver-Commey said the severe case ward is also full to capacity and can no longer admit new patients due to a lack of oxygen and staff.

He explained, “The only reason you can take patients to your intensive care unit is when you have oxygen and the right staff to treat them.

“At the moment we are limited by the lack of oxygen and it is not only the center of infectious diseases, almost all intensive care centers are limited by oxygen, including the use of oxygen at high speed, very expensive that patients cannot afford.

“We’re not saying we can’t take care of the patients, but the things to use to treat them, the nurses, the oxygen is a problem.”

“You reduce that only to oxygen, I said oxygen plus the staff, so I could have the oxygen but not the staff and if I don’t have the staff, why am I putting a patient on? the bed ? Dr. Oliver-Commey asked.

The Acting Director of the Ghana Infectious Disease Center has advised the public to strictly adhere to all safety precautions related to COVID-19.

He added that “what is important right now is that we stick to the measures that have helped us. Unfortunately, we are behaving like a country that has vaccinated 50% of its population. Even the UK and US are able to open their stadiums because they know they were able to vaccinate all of their people, but we didn’t even make 2% of our population, but the Ghanaian ordinary behaves as if there is no tomorrow.

“This is my humble appeal to all Ghanaians, if you get sick and you get seriously ill the government can’t help you, I wouldn’t be able to help you and your neighbor next door, so consciously avoid having COVID-19, ”said Dr. Oliver-Commey.