Ghana-Canada Medical Centre opens with a Family Health Fair
Audrey Micah, Ghanadot

Accra, July 25, Ghanadot - Ghana-Canada Medical Centre launched its operation on Saturday July 25, 2009, with a mega Family Health Fair that brought hundreds of people from far and near who went through various types of medical screening for free.

The screening was spread over many medical problems of immediate concern to the average Ghanaian; from high blood pressure, blood sugar, diabetic, nutrition, malaria, HIV, to Hepatitis B&C screening and a host of other tests.

The Ghana-Canada Medical Center is the brain child of a group of Ghanaian doctors who  trained and worked in Canada.

In an exclusive interview with Ghanadot on the day of the fair, Dr. Kwame Danso, the Medical Director of the centre, noted that the name Ghana-Canada Medical Centre was a tribute to their work experience in Canada and a devotion to their motherland Ghana.

With numerous health care related issues surfacing in Ghana, coupled with inadequate health care facilities in the country these days, it was a relief for many of the attendees at the free health screening to find that such a modern facility, the Ghana-Canada Medical Centre, has opened its doors to the public at Manor Valley, a suburb of Accra, the nation's capital.

According to Dr. Danso, the building of the centre was a way of giving  back to their country of birth, and that it was dedication to Ghana and its development that motivated them to return home, after a long stay in Canada, to help the nation in the health care sector.

Dr. Danso attributed the opportunity to advance their careers in medicine to the sound educational foundation provided by the vision of the late Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the first president of the nation. 

It was this fortuitous event, he said, that saw some of them go through secondary and medical school at no cost to them or their parents. 

This opportunity, Dr. Danso claimed, was what helped turn them into medical doctors and for the same reason has propelled them to return home and to give something back to the motherland.

 “When we were growing up, going to secondary and medical school were free in Ghana.  They give you free money to buy books and cloths. We went abroad and after so many years, we are back to help. Some of us are here on a permanent stay and to work.  And those among us who can't will return to Canada and then back again to the Center for more work from time to time."
 

Ghana-Canada Medical Center was constructed with a $1 million loan.  Not only does it hold "well" men and women clinics on daily basis, but it has open and private wards for adults and a complimentary pediatric clinic within the same hospital facility.

Designed to meet the needs of men, women and children of every age, this moderate size hospital is located at a very accessible area, has emergency ward and a 24-hour ambulance entrance, a functioning surgical theater, labor and delivery suites and mother/baby rooms with nurseries for "well" babies as well as sick ones.

In short, the Ghana-Canada Center is well equipped to give good health care for all in Ghana.  It has its own laboratory for various tests.  Part of the lab tests are now sourced to centers in South Africa.  But according to Dr. Danso, the center would soon have all its lab work done in-house.

Asked about his view of health care in the country, Dr. Danso hinted that though there were so many problems and challenges in the nation’s health sector, Ghana-Canada Medical Center was here to do its part and its best for the general public.

The objective of the center, Dr. Danso emphasized, was to be a one- stop, top class hospital for all and where everything from lab test to surgery was done in-house.

“At the end of the day, Ghana-Canada will build a day inpatient clinic behind the main hospital, with residences for the doctors who will be coming from Canada and abroad to work here.

“Our target is on everybody who needs health care, and our promise is that anyone who walks in here will get the best care and attention, regardless of his or her income.”

And for the poor, Dr. Danso assured that "even those who don't have money to pay their bills will get health care because there are doctors in Canada who will come to work here for free at the Center.  The money saved from non-payment of salaries will be put into a fund to help those who cannot afford the bills".

Ghana-Canada Medical Center is located at Manor Valley, Adjirigano, on Trasacco  Valley road, East Legon, Accra, Ghana.  Telephone number is 021-521-439.

Ghanadot


guaranteed