Ankaful: Mentally ill patients to be prematurely discharged ahead of strike action
Mentally ill patients at the Ankaful Psychiatric Hospital in the Central Region of Ghana are to be prematurely discharged by the hospital’s management.
This, according to the management is to make way for a sit-down strike scheduled for tomorrow, Thursday, November 23, 2017.
The impending strike comes on the heels of efforts by nurses of the hospital for the dismissal of the hospital’s Director, Mr. Eugene Dordoye for claims of misconduct and mismanagement of the hospital.
After an emergency meeting held on Tuesday, 21 November by staff of the hospital, nurses in charge of the hospital’s wards were directed to carry out a mass discharge of the patients in order for the strike not to have an effect on staff.
A 3-day ultimatum issued to the Ministry of Health and Mental Health Authority by the aggrieved staff comes to an end today, and will see them lay down their tools tomorrow if their demands to see the sacking of Mr. Dordoye, is not met.
Inadequate funding from the government for the feeding of the patients is another concern of the aggrieved staff.
In August this year, the Acting Clinical Coordinator of the Ankaful Psychiatric Hospital, Dr Emefa Dzide bemoaned the hospital’s financial constraints. The government was not providing the required funds, she said.
According to her, feeding the hospital’s patients had become a burden, as the hospital has to source funds or rely on the goodwill of charity organizations to cater for the patients.
