The Ebola centre in Tema is ready. It is part of three major centers being put up by the government of Ghana to deal with people who may contract the disease in the event of an outbreak.
“Everything is set in there and can be used in case we have an Ebola patient,” said Tony Goodman, the Public Relations Officer for Ministry of Health.
The 10-bed capacity structure was built with funds from the GHC 6 million released by the Ghana government to prepare the nation for any Ebola outbreak.
[contextly_sidebar id=”nl3QOlsBrM5jdU8rKnbr9QBKRHMfqI8Z”]The remaining centers for the middle and northern belts are also expected to be ready soon.
The structure which is situated close to the entrance of the Tema General hospital is made of tarpaulin supported at the edges with metallic polls.
It has all the facilities needed in a medical ward including a decontamination chamber, corpse carrier bags, goggles, infrared thermometers, and nasal oxygen tubes, among others.
Ghana which is currently hosting a United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER), has so far tested over 80 suspected cases of Ebola which have all proven negative.
The country has received support from some other nations including the Japanese government which has donated 150,000 posters and brochures to the Ghana Health Service (GHS) to support the campaign to create awareness.
China has also donated 5 million yuan ($833,000) worth of equipment and medical supplies to help the country deal with any outbreak
Mr. Goodman said the Health Ministry is aiming at building permanent structures to handle such outbreaks in the future.
“We are looking at building a more suitable one,” he said, “one that can last for long.”
Ebola has killed over 3,000 people in West Africa with Serria Leone, Guinea and Liberia being the worst affected countries.
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By: Betty Kankam Boadu/citifmonline.com/Ghana