A fundraising campaign to modernise and expand the existing Cardiothoracic Disease Centre of the Ho Teaching Hospital (HTH) has been launched in Ho.

Dubbed ‘Save a Heart, Save a Life’ the $3.2 million campaign is being spearheaded by ICS Africa, an Accra-based event Company.

It is to mobilise funds to equip the Centre with standard machines and operationalise the different units of the Centre towards undertaking major cardiac surgeries at the HTH.

Currently, cardiac patients for treatment and surgeries are referred to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, which is well-equipped to undertake such surgeries in the country.

Acting Chief Executive of HTH, Dr John Tampuori who launched the Campaign, said the initiative would help people seeking cardio treatment to get them at the hospital.

He said between January and June 18, this year, some 729 cardiac patients were treated at the hospital’s Outpatient Department.

The quality of service was improving but congestion and breakdown of systems were responsible for the long queues of patients seeking medical attention and referrals.

Dr Tampuori said records of cardiac patients were synchronised among the four Teaching hospitals in the country, saying patients no longer needed to carry folders during referrals and expressed the hope that the system would be replicated at the regional Hospital levels.

He said a functional and well-resourced cardiothoracic centre, positioned to manage both lungs and heart diseases, would enable the facility to offer world-class services to its numerous clients.

The project would place the HTH as the newest medical centre in Volta to serve clients from Oti, Eastern, Togo, Benin and Nigeria.

“We, therefore, plead with stakeholders, Ghanaians in general, to join the campaign for the realisation of the dream. Let us together save a heart, save a life.”

Dr Tampuori thanked Mr Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, the Minister of Health, Dr Letsa, Volta Regional Minister for their unflinching support of the HTH.

He said Pricewater House, an accredited auditing firm, has been partnered to provide value for money and guard against embezzlement and diversion of resources for the Centre and suggested that “when each indigene is allowed to pay a token of GH₵ 2 with the population of the region from the previous census figures, the equipment cost will be taken care off.”

Prof Frank Edwin, Head of Cardiothoracic Surgery Centre of UHAS and HTH, said there were only three fully accredited Centres for cardiothoracic training in West Africa, including the National Cardiothoracic Centre (NCC) in Accra and those of Cote D’Ivoire and Senegal.

He said with an estimated 30 million population, the ideal situation would have been 15 cardiothoracic Centres, according to international best practices of one cardio centre to two million population.

Professor Edwin said a study showed that some 8,000 children were born with congenital heart disease otherwise known as hole-in-heart condition annually.

The majority of these children require corrective surgery but currently, less than one per cent are operated upon due to less facility to diagnose and treat with funding being another challenge.

Prof John Gyapong, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Health and Allied Sciences, who initiated discussions for the construction of a cardiothoracic Centre some months ago, was happy about the fund-raising project.

He disclosed that equipment lists towards operationalising the Centre costs some $ 3.2 million and expectant that with careful planning the amount could be realised through a good mobilisation effort.

He said though positive assurances have been received from duty-bearers, kick-starting a fundraiser was a strong admonition of the essence of setting up the facility.

“As a people, let’s come together, we need the facility badly, let’s make a difference. Some people dream, it takes others to conceptualise those dreams to reality.”

Dr Archibald Yao Letsa, Volta Regional Minister, pledged the Regional Coordinating Council’s support to actualise the dream for the delivery of timeous provision of healthcare at the point of need.

Togbe Afede, the Agbogbomefia of Asogli State, through Togbe Kotoku XI, the Paramount Chief of Kpenoe, on behalf of the traditional authorities pledged support to the initiative.