The Vice Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Professor Ebenezer Oduro Owusu, has called on the staff of the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC) to ensure that they maintained world-class standards in their dealings with their patients.

He was the keynote speaker at a simulation exercise for the newly employed 181 staff of the UGMC in Accra Friday.

The UGMC has increased its staff strength to enable it to scale up operations by the end of this month.

The vice-chancellor expressed the hope that the centre would work at helping to change the mindset and perception of people about healthcare delivery in the country.

He said although the facility was adorned with beautiful structures, the attitude of the staff within it would show how “beautiful” the place was.

The vice-chancellor called on them to exhibit the highest sense of commitment and dedication to their work, saying that was what would make the facility a success.

He further called on the staff to eschew extortion from their patients and other vices that would put the name of the centre into disrepute.

The University of Ghana Medical Centre, which is a quaternary medical and research centre, due to its new staff strength, will be undertaking additional services in areas such as medicine, general surgery, cardiology, urology, emergency medicine, gastroenterology and dermatology.

Others are imaging and radiology, medical laboratory, pharmacy and ophthalmology.

The 650-bed facility will perform three main functions — healthcare delivery, training and research.

Parliament has approved $50million loan for the completion of the second phase which is expected to be ready and fully operational in December 2020. This will also result in equipping the facility with a VIP maternity and a private floor, cardiovascular and open-heart surgery unit and a neurosurgery unit.