At least 20 patients detained at the Koforidua Regional Hospital for their inability to pay their medical bills have been bailed out by the Kabaka Foundation.

The patients include new mothers who delivered through cesarean sessions after complications during labour.

Chairman and founder of the philanthropic organisation, Nana Owiredu Wadie, went to the aid of the patients after the hospital management made a passionate appeal to him.

The presentation of the cash amount of ¢20,000 he noted coincided with his birthday.

“Today marks the day I am celebrating my birthday, so the reason why I came here is to extend a helping hand to those who are poor and need support. I chose Koforidua central hospital because this is where I come from,” he explained.

The practise of detaining people in hospitals for the non-payment of medical bills is common in healthcare facilities across the country.

Mr Wadie, through his NGO, Kabaka Foundation, also commissioned the refurbished Neo-natal intensive care unit pre-natal wards in honour of his mother, Madam Yaa Boatemaa.

It will provide a serene and hygienic health atmosphere for newborn babies who need intensive care and pregnant women in labour.

The unit, a referral point in the region, has been expanded from a 30-bed capacity to a 50-bed capacity to house more babies to help treat neonatal jaundice and save the lives of premature newborn babies in the region.

The Foundation also donated large quantities of soaps, detergents, milo, baby diapers, soft drinks, bottled water, among others, to the hospital to take care of patients, particularly pregnant and nursing mothers.

The Executive Director of the Foundation, Henry Larbi, said the gesture forms part of the foundation’s aim to reduce maternal mortality to meet the Sustainable Development Goal.

On behalf of the founder, Mr Larbi promised to construct a new multi-complex building at the Eastern Regional Hospital to house a new NICU department with an OPD and a mothers’ hostel for the hospital next year to house mothers whose babies are kept at the NICU.

The administrator of the hospital, Mary Amponsah Kwatiah, appreciated the gesture of the foundation.

The Kabaka Foundation is a Non-Profit Organisation with a mission of spreading the love of God by putting smiles on the faces of the needy and underprivileged in society through impactful social interventions and community development programs.

The Foundation undertakes projects focused on orphans, nursing mothers, street children, sick and terminally ill, persons with disabilities, and other vulnerable people in society.