Mr Victor Nuamah, a Psychiatric Nurse at the Obuasi Government Hospital, has expressed concern over the alarming rate of mental health cases in the municipality.
“At least you will meet a mental health patient at every 100-meter walk.
This is really worrying,” he said at an annual health performance review meeting at Obuasi.
Although there is a lack of reliable data on the prevalence of mental and neurological disorders in the country, the World Health Organisation estimates that approximately 13 per cent of Ghanaians suffer from a mental disorder.
Out of that, three percent suffer from a severe mental disorder and the other 10 per cent suffer from moderate to mild conditions.
Mr Nuamah said the number of schizophrenic, schizotypal and delusional disorder cases increased from 28 in 2022 to 30 in 2023, while issues of mental elusion due to alcohol, psychoactive substance use increased from 28 in 2022 to 38 in 2023.
He called on stakeholders to collaborate to facilitate the discussion on mental health issues and devise ways to reduce its incidence, especially regarding substance abuse.
Mr Martin Safo Osei, the Obuasi Municipal Director of Health Services, said contrary to the widely held view that the recent increase in the attrition rate of nurses had affected health care delivery in the country, available data confirmed that the situation had not directly affected the nurse-to-patient ratio in the municipality.
Ghana is now ranked among some 55 countries facing serious shortage of health workers, according to the WHO.
That notwithstanding, Mr Osei said health facilities in the area were not affected by the number of health professionals, especially nurses leaving the country to seek greener pastures.
He commended the health workers for demonstrating high levels of commitment and dedication to improved quality healthcare delivery despite the challenges.
Madam Peace Mati, the Head of Administration, Obuasi Government Hospital, disclosed that the hospital had taken delivery of a dialysis machine, donated by the Asaase Foundation, which had so far been installed.
She said health professionals would undergo training on how to effectively operate the machine, while efforts were being made to procure consumables to ensure patients who needed dialysis were properly taken care of.
GNA
KOM/ABD
26 Feb. 2024
