Dr Anthony Nsiah-Asare, Chief Executive Officer of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), has called on the Italian Air Force to assist the hospital with an Air Ambulance for the ultra modern Accident and Emergency Centre at KATH which has a helipad.
He said this would ensure the speedy conveyance of critically ill or seriously injured patients to the hospital from accident scenes all over the region.
Dr. Nsiah-Asare made the call when the Italian Air Force presented a fully equipped Ambulance and Echo-Cardiograph Machine worth 50,000 Euros
to the Accident and Emergency Centre of the hospital on Wednesday.
He said with the fledgling collaboration with AISPO of Saint Rafael Hospital also in Italy through which KATH received the Ambulance, AISPO has already solicited for 40,000 Euros from the City of Milan to procure teaching aids and equipment to set up a n Emergency Nursing School at the Centre.
He said plans were far advanced for the commencement of multi-million euro collaboration with Saint Rafael Hospital in the area of cervical and breast cancers.
Dr Nsiah-Asare expressed appreciation to Mr. Stefano Ramella Pezza, Honorary Consul of Italy to Ashanti and Western Regions and Mr Fabrizio De
Agostini, the Italian Ambassador to Ghana, AISPO and Rafael Hospital for initiating and facilitating the delivery of the Ambulance and the machine to KATH.
Mr. Kofi Opoku-Manu, the Ashanti Regional Minister, who received the Ambulance on behalf of KATH said, Ambulance service was indispensable
in the provision of quality health-care delivery stressing that the presentation of the logistics was very timely.
The Minister expressed his gratitude to the Italian Government, the Ambassador and all those who helped in the provision of the Ambulance and
expressed the hope that it would go a long way to save lives.
Mr Fabrizio De Agostini noted that the presentation was humanitarian adding that the Ambulance was not only a gift but something that would strengthen the bond of friendship between Ghana and Italy.
Nana Adu Gyamfi, Adontenhene of Kumasi who represented the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, expressed his appreciation to the donors and
hoped that more of such gestures would come from other organizations to promote smooth health delivery in the region.