The Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) has reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to partner with the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital to help improve healthcare delivery.
The Chief Executive Officer of MIIF, Mrs Justina Nelson, stated that healthcare advocacy and support services form one of the three pillars of MIIF’s operations, with the other two being the expansion of the mining sector and the prudent investment of mining royalties.
She made this known when the Director of Medical Affairs of Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr Frank Owusu-Sekyere, on behalf of the Chief Executive Officer, led members of the Central Management Team to pay a courtesy call on MIIF. The visit was aimed at exploring avenues for partnership, particularly in efforts to strengthen the health sector.
Mrs Nelson emphasised that the most valuable asset of any nation is a healthy population. She, therefore, reiterated MIIF’s commitment to supporting the hospital in bridging its infrastructure gap. Present at the meeting from MIIF were Mr Charles Benoni Okine, Director of Corporate Affairs and External Relations; Ms Rosetta Esi Asmah, Head of Human Resources, Administration, Finance David Awuah-Mensah; among other officials.
Dr Owusu-Sekyere highlighted that Korle Bu specialises in delivering cutting-edge, world-class healthcare services, largely due to its unmatched human resource base. He described the hospital as a beacon for teaching, research, and medical tourism, and a referral centre for complex medical conditions.
He further reiterated the hospital’s readiness to collaborate with MIIF to strengthen the Women in Mining initiative, particularly the Girl-Child-in-School programme, which is scheduled to be rolled out in September this year.
Dr Owusu-Sekyere also stressed that at Korle Bu, the delivery of healthcare is not dependent on the ability to pay. No patient is turned away on the basis of affordability.
The Korle Bu delegation included Dr Frank Owusu-Sekyere, Director of Medical Affairs; Mrs Aimee Akotey, Acting Director of Nursing and Midwifery Services; Mr Munir Alhassan, Director of Administration; Dr Charles Ofei-Palm, Director of Pharmacy; Mr Yahuza Jawula, Director of Human Resources; Mrs Felicity Commey, Deputy Director of Supply Chain; and Mr Mustapha Salifu, Head of Public Relations.
A seven-member Taiwan health delegation has paid a courtesy call on the Chief Executive Officer of Korle Bu Teaching Hospital to discuss and deepen the long-standing collaboration and partnership between the Hospital, and Taichung Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare Taiwan. Also present were representatives from China medical university, Taiyuan Hospital, Xiochuan Hospital.
The high powered delegation comprises; Dr. Huang, Superintendent Taichung Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Taiwan; Mrs. Huang – Spouse of Dr. Huang; Prof. Lee YC– Faculty, China Medical University; Mrs. Lee – Spouse of Prof. Lee; Dr. Yang Nan-Ping, Superintendent Taoyuan Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Taiwan; Prof. Peter Chang; Director of international Affairs Xiochuan Hospital Dr. Shih Liang– Director of International Affairs, Taichung Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Taiwan.
The Chief Executive of Korle Bu Teaching Hospital Dr.Yakubu Seidu Adam in his welcome remarks expressed appreciation to the Taiwan team for keeping faith to the Bilateral Cooperation between Korle Bu and Taichung Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Taiwan. He underscored the significance of this partnership especially so when the world has become a global village.
Dr. Adam reiterated that as a quaternary Hospital, it is committed to delivering world class healthcare services, train generational health professionals, and promote medical tourism not only in Ghana but across the West African Sub-Region.
He explained the importance of exploring and strengthening the partnership in areas such as training of Critical care, emergency, and peri-operative nurses and also the exchange and transfer of human resource specialty on organ transplant.
The Taiwan delegation disclosed that in Asia, their facilities are leading in orthopedic procedures, non-invasive surgical procedure, acupuncture practices and learning, and above all has developed a robust medical AI in response to dynamic needs of the healthcare services.
The team mentioned their commitment to sharing their experiences with Korle Bu. They further made a passionate appeal to the Chief Executive to visit Taiwan to gain experience and learn more.
Present to support the CEO to receive the delegation were; Acting Director Nursing and Midwifery Services, Mrs. Aimee Akotey, Head of Department of Physiotherapy Mrs. Sandra Asante, Mr. Misbah Samir Deputy Physiotherapist and Mr. Phanuel Gazie Executive Assistant to CEO.
The Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiamah, has emphasized that the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital is like a family house to every Ghanaian. As such, he encouraged all citizens to take an active interest in supporting the hospital’s efforts to deliver quality, seamless, and world-class healthcare services.
“Nobody knows when he or she may end up at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital to receive medical care. Therefore, partnering with the hospital’s management to improve service delivery is very important,” Dr. Asiamah added.
He made these remarks when members of the Central Management Team of the hospital paid a courtesy visit to the Bank of Ghana. The purpose of the visit was to develop strategies to strengthen the existing partnership and explore new pathways for collaboration between Korle Bu, the Bank Hospital, and the Central Bank.
Dr. Asiamah explained that the establishment of the Bank Hospital was aimed at bridging the healthcare gap and reducing the need for Ghanaians to travel abroad for medical treatment. He reaffirmed the Central Bank’s commitment to strengthening the partnership—particularly in the areas of human resource exchange, capacity building, and equipment support.
He also pledged to send a delegation to the hospital to assess the current state and utilization of the Bank’s support.
The Korle Bu delegation expressed appreciation to the Bank for its warm reception and underscored the importance of the partnership in helping improve health outcomes. The team disclosed that approximately seventy percent (70%) of Ghana’s medical professionals are trained at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.
The hospital also expressed profound gratitude to the Bank for its donation of a One Million Dollar Catheterization Laboratory (Cath Lab) equipment to the facility in April 2023.
Despite existing challenges, the hospital reiterated its resolve to ensure that no Ghanaian is denied access to medical treatment or professional training due to financial constraints.
Mr. Munir Alhassan, Director of Administration, led the delegation on behalf of the CEO. He was accompanied by Dr. Harry Akoto, Acting Director of Medical Affairs; Dr. Charles Ofei Palm, Director of Pharmacy; Mrs. Aimee Akotey, Acting Director of Nursing and Midwifery Services; Mrs. Felicity Commey, Deputy Director of Supply Chain; and Mr. Mustapha Salifu, Head of Public Relations.
The Ear,Nose and Throat (E.N.T) department of the Korle bu Teaching Hospital has organized a free health screening programme for about 137 beneficiaries in the Ga North Municipal Assembly.
The exercise forms part of activities to celebrate 2025 World Head and Neck day which falls July 27 every year. This outreach is aimed at educating the public about the risk factors,symptoms and early detection of head and neck cancers for the people in the Ofankor community in the Ga North municipality.
The Head of E.N.T department Dr.Kenneth Baidoo who led the 15 member clinical team to embark on the exercise in his opening remarks said head and neck cancers are on the rise and creating awareness was a necessity which will help reduce the prevalent rate or eradicate it to help improve the quality of life.
He stated that the free screening programme was collaboration with the Ga North Municipal Hospital and therefore the community should take the opportunity to be screened.
Dr. Baidoo emphasized that smoking shisha and tobacco among the youth, drinking of alcohol and having oral sex are some risk factors associated with head and neck cancers.
Furthermore he highlighted on the importance of practicing a healthy lifestyle by eating balanced meals,hydrating and exercising to boost your immune system.
Dr.Evelyn Nyamekye a Specialist further reinforced this message stating not to ignore when experiencing any of these symptoms: Lump in the neck, a growth in the mouth, swallowing difficulty, changes in your skin, persistent Earache, bringing up blood.
Dr.Agyenim Boateng a Specialist also highlighted on the dangerous use of harmful chemicals and inhalation of toxic substances by some people into their system which could be detrimental to their health thereby having higher risk exposure to head and neck cancers.
During the screening exercise the clinicians extracted impacted wax from some patients as a result providing an instant relief to them.
Referrals were given to people who required further treatment.
The response from the beneficiaries was that of an overwhelming gratitude towards the clinicians and the Hospital as a whole, and stated that more of such gestures are welcomed in the future.
The Central Management Team of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital has paid a courtesy call on the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) to explore opportunities for collaboration and mutual support.
The visit served as a platform to strengthen relations, discuss potential areas of partnership, and exchange vital information.
Representing the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital were the Acting Director of Medical Affairs, Dr. Harry Akoto; Director of Administration, Mr. Munir Alhassan; Acting Director of Finance, Mr. Gideon Gawuga; Deputy Director of Supply Chain, Madam Felicity Commey; Director of Pharmacy, Dr. Charles Ofei-Palm; Chief Nursing Officer, Madam Margaret Acheampong; and Head of Public Relations, Mr. Mustapha Salifu.
The delegation, led by the Director of Administration, Mr. Munir Alhassan, on behalf of the Chief Executive, was warmly received by a GNPC team led by the Acting Chief Executive, Mr. Kwame Ntow Amoah, together with other directors of the corporation.
In their submission, the Korle Bu team emphasised the importance of partnerships, noting that while government support remains essential, it cannot address all the hospital’s needs. They expressed appreciation for GNPC’s assistance over the years and signalled their desire for a strategic partnership that could also extend certain health benefit advantages to GNPC.
GNPC, in response, noted that it is adopting innovative approaches to mobilise resources, adding that health, safety, security, and environmental sustainability remain critical priorities for the corporation. The corporation expressed confidence in the potential for mutually beneficial collaboration and encouraged the hospital to submit a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and a detailed proposal outlining strategies to advance the partnership.
Both parties reaffirmed their commitment to building on the cordial relationship established over the years to achieve shared objectives.
