The father of a seven-month-old baby is heartbroken over her death due to what he says is the healthcare system's failure to respond to her emergency.

Francis Opoku Gyamfi said his daughter could have survived if the referral system was efficient.

Afia Sika Opoku Gyamfi had breathing problems and was referred to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) from the Asokwa Children's Hospital.

According to aggrieved father, his daughter gasped heavily for breath every 30 seconds even under oxygen at the Asokwa Children’s hospital.

Speaking to Luv FM, he said she was referred to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital when her condition deteriorated.

However, his calls and those by the hospital to the National Ambulance Service failed to attract the needed attention. 

Health professionals at the Asokwa Hospital later informed him that the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital lacked space to accommodate his sick daughter.

“Around 10:45pm my wife called me and told me the health workers attending to my daughter want to transfer her to KATH. So I quickly rushed to the hospital and they told me they have called the ambulance service to transport her to KATH.

“So for about 30 minutes, I heard nothing from them. So, I also called the Ambulance Service for about four times but nobody speaks when the call is answered. 

He continued, “After several attempts, a lady answered the call and I explained everything to her and she told me she was lodging a complaint. 

“I can’t tell if they are going to call today to send an ambulance to transport my daughter, from the time I called them. I was really furious. One of the workers approached me and told me, KATH says it has no bed for my daughter,” he said. 

The little girl later died. 

KATH Response

Public Relations Officer at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Kwame Frimpong, said an initial inquiry at the hospital’s call log showed no evidence of a call placed from the Asokwa Children’s Hospital. 

He has, however, indicated that the quality control unit of the hospital is probing the matter.

“We checked our records at the pediatric emergency unit and our main telephone exchange and there was no call from that hospital.

“So, the quality assurance unit at our hospital has been asked to do further investigations. Usually, whenever someone calls any of the emergency units there’s a documentation procedure that is followed,” he said. 

Mr Frimpong noted that the hospital has adopted strategies to care for referral cases in the midst of congestion at the health facility. 

He said specialists at the Hospital are on standby to advise doctors at other health facilities within the region to remedy medical situations without referring cases. 

The move was necessitated by the pressure imposed on the hospital due to congestion and lack of space.

“Until we get complimentary facilities like Korle-Bu as in Accra where there’s UGMC, Ridge hospital, 37 military hospital amongst others. 

He added, “Until we reach that point where there are complimentary facilities in the region to take some of the pressure off KATH, there will be times that we would have exhausted our capacity, and we will not be in the position to admit more patients.

“So it’s not just a question of no beds, but the absence of bed space,” he said.