President John Dramani Mahama has charged the contractor working on the La General Hospital project to speed up work to meet the November 27 deadline for handing over the completed project.
The President, who was speaking after a site visit and inspection, said that since the demolition of the old facility, patients who used to depend on the old hospital due to its proximity now have to endure the stress of moving farther to other larger facilities like the Ridge Hospital, LEKMA, and Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.
He expressed satisfaction with the progress of work since the contractor returned to the site, adding that the government will ensure nothing stalls the project, which is badly needed to be operationalised to ease the burden on other major health facilities.
“The hospital is progressing quite well, and we want to make sure that nothing stalls it again before the due date. The contractor assures us that by November 2027, we should be able to commission this hospital”.
The new La General Hospital, he said, will have 160 beds when completed.
“Currently, people complain that when they have emergencies, they are not able to get sufficient beds, so this hospital adds 160 more beds, – he explained, adding that his government will re-award the new Police Hospital project, which has also stalled for years to be completed.
“We have terminated the contract with the Police Hospital. We are going to re-award it so that we can finish it quickly and then create more bed space.”
The President also announced that the Medical Emergency Centre, which operated during the COVID pandemic, will be refurbished to serve as a holding facility for emergency cases if no beds are available.
He also observed that Accra’s fast-growing population has put a strain on health facilities, hence the need for proactive steps to address the challenge.
“So, the emergency centre, which was built at Burma Camp during the COVID period, is going to be repurposed to have beds for handling only emergencies.
“If there is an emergency and a person is not accepted at any of these hospitals, the emergency centre at Burma Camp will come to his/her rescue.”
The facility, according to the President, will be well-equipped and sufficiently completed when it is completed, to save lives.
Touching on the Free Primary Healthcare programme, the President said it has come to stay and shall complement the National Health Insurance Scheme and the Ghana Medical Trust Fund (MahamaCares).
“They say prevention is better than cure. The Free Primary Healthcare will include education on healthcare and early screening for blood pressure, blood sugar levels, breast cancer, and other communicable diseases.
“With that, you would not need to be hospitalised, thereby easing the current pressure on our health workers and health facilities.”
The Minister for Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, in his remarks, said the La General Hospital will serve over 150,000 people from the surrounding areas, namely La, Osu, Teshie Nungua and nearby communities in Accra.
The La General Hospital was demolished in July 2020 to be rebuilt. But a redevelopment project initiated by the previous government to build a new 126-bed, six-story facility stalled due to insufficient funding.
Work resumed early this year after the government released funds to clear outstanding arrears. It is expected to be completed by November 2027.
