The Vice President of the Ghana Federation for the Disabled, Mr. Yaw Ofori Debrah has expressed concern over the state of the Accra Psychiatric Hospital and its patients. The hospital authorities fear there will be a time sooner than later, when it can no longer admit patients and would probably have to discharge some patients who are currently receiving treatment at the hospital. The facility is presently under immense pressure with patients coming in from all parts of the country to seek medical attention when the hospital is incapable of meeting its financial needs. Speaking with Asempa News, Mr. Debrah therefore appealed to government and corporate bodies to come to the aid of the various psychiatric hospitals in the nation. Meanwhile Chief Psychiatrist at the Accra Psychiatric Hospital, Dr Akwasi Osei has suggested that the psychiatric health care system should be decentralized to ease pressure on the three psychiatric health facilities in the country. Dr Osei says the hospital is not only indebted but is under resourced in terms of staff and logistics. He said the under resourcefulness of the hospital is a threat to quality healthcare delivery to all who may require medical attention. According to him, the hospital currently has more than one thousand patients with a staff of five doctors, two of whom are consultant psychiatrists, a clinical psychologist who works with the Ministry of Health and two hundred nurses to make the list. Each year the hospital receives only one-third of the medications they require, not to mention the unavailability of health equipment, the doctor observed. Dr Osei hinted that ideally the hospital should boast of at least two hundred doctors - ten of whom must be consultant psychiatrists - six hundred nurses and five clinical psychologists to ensure a smooth running of the facility. He lamented the challenges resulting from this situation and explained that the current situation can be solved with the passing into law of the National Health Bsill which has been before parliament for quite some time. Story by Abraham Lante Lamptey/Asempa FM/Ghana