Residents of some communities in Atwima Kwanwoma District of Ashanti Region, including Apire, are unable to access healthcare at the only facility in the area due to bad roads.

A bridge linking Apire, where the Catholic HopeXchange Medical Centre is located, and the other communities have collapsed, forcing patients to commute on foot to access healthcare, Luv FM’s Nana Asenso Mensah reported. 

The 40-year-old bridge which connects Apire and Heman is now a death trap.

Besides the collapsed structure, deep galleys have developed on the entire stretch of the road making it almost impossible for vehicles to commute on it. 

Commercial drivers are reluctant to use the road even during emergencies. 

Chiefs and residents of Apire want swift intervention to avoid preventable deaths. 

“Chiefs don't construct roads. Constructing roads is the job of the government. I plead with the government to come to our aid,” Nana Obirikorang II, chief of the town told Joy News. 

On his part, Manager of the Catholic HopeXchange Medical Centre, Dominic Osei Kofi, says that the facility is currently underutilised owing to the unmotorable nature of the road linking the hospital and the community. 

“They don't bring minor illness for treatment until the condition gets worse. Others who can afford, look elsewhere for medical attention,” Osei Kofi narrated. 

He adds that “initially we were having patients coming from these community because it is the closest and the biggest but the condition of the road is such that now people cannot come to the hospital and that is affecting the patronage of the hospital. Several attempts to put the road in shape have failed.”