Work at the Neurosurgical Unit of the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) has stalled following the theft of some vital surgical equipment at the unit.As a result, the unit has not been able to carry out any surgical operation for more than a week, leading to fears that patients with critical conditions might lose their lives.The centre, which is fully booked for neurosurgical operations for the next three months, caters for patients in the entire northern sector and other parts of the country as well as some referral cases from Burkina Faso.Even though the hospital authorities have confirmed the theft, they declined to give details. They, however, indicated that the theft had been reported to the police. No arrest has been made yet.According to a source at the hospital, the equipment might have been stolen some weeks ago.The source explained that the equipment were usually sterilised and kept in a metal container after every operation.He said the theft came to the notice of the authorities when the neurosurgeon, Dr Abass Adam, went to the theatre last week to perform surgery. When the container was opened the equipment were nowhere to be found.At the 2012 Annual Performance Review Meeting of the hospital in Tamale last month, the Chief Executive Officer of the TTH, Dr Ken Sagoe, expressed concern about the high rate at which consumables and other equipment of the hospital were being stolen.He said some of the stolen items were later sold back to the hospital by some of the staff.Dr Sagoe indicated that “the sale of items such as gloves, plaster and gauze is on the increase and it affects the hospital's finances and operations".