The Bono Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Kofi Amo-Kodieh says the lack of accommodation has led to the disproportionate distribution of health personnel to the various hospitals in the region.   

According to him, the lack of accommodation has resulted in most health workers refusing postings to deprived communities.   

Dr Amo-Kodieh made the submission during the 2020 annual Performance Review in Sunyani under the theme: “Reducing Preventable and Avoidable Deaths amid Covid-19” that was attended by 140 participants drawn from the 12 districts in the Bono region.   

He further indicated that the accommodation challenges has led to the overstaffing of more than 400 nurses in the Sunyani East and West Municipality while facilities in Banda, Dormaa West, Tain, Jaman North and South were without nurses to deliver health services to citizens.     

Dr Amo Kodieh said out of the 215 health workers posted to some districts to provide quality healthcare, only 49 were currently at the post, adding that 15 would retire in two years, compounding the disparity in the region.       

He said most Community-Based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) Compounds in the region were built without the necessary consultation with the District Health Directorate, leaving the CHPS without accommodation, resulting in the nurses being forced to live in nearby towns.   

He also explained that CHPS compounds were very important for the delivery of primary healthcare in the country to help achieve Universal Health Coverage by the year 2030.    

He said reducing preventable and avoidable deaths could only be achieved in the Region with the establishment of health clinics in all the Districts hospitals.   

Dr Amo Kodieh observed that despite the challenges surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic, the directorate in the region was able to improve on the doctor-population ratio from 1:9,816 in 2019 to 1:9,131 in 2020 while the nurse-population ratio also improved significantly from 1:349 in 2019 to 1:246 in 2020.

Dignitaries present were the Vice-Chancellor of the Sunyani Technical University, religious leaders, health directors, traditional leaders, health practitioners, representatives of the Midwifery Council, stakeholders and health partners.