The scarcity of pediatric dialysis machines and supplies has resulted in the tragic death of 15 children at the Tamale Teaching Hospital.
Due to the unavailability of these critical medical resources, healthcare professionals have resorted to using adult machines, posing severe risks to the lives of vulnerable patients.
The Nurse Manager of the Tamale Teaching Hospital Dialysis Unit, Adam Yahaya Wanzam, has made a desperate appeal for help, urging the government, individuals, and non-governmental organizations to come forward and provide the urgently needed life-saving equipment and supplies.
“We have lost over 10 to 15 children who were supposed to receive dialysis,” Wanzam lamented. “But for a lack of pediatric machines, we were improvising with the adult machines, and the adult machines and consumables are not for children.”
Mr Wanzam emphasized that the repercussions of this shortage are devastating, affecting not only the children who have lost their lives but also inflicting unimaginable pain on their families.
“We are calling on individuals and Non-governmental organisations to come to our aid by helping us acquire these pediatric machines and consumables so that when an innocent child finds him/herself in this situation, the Tamale Teaching Hospital Dialysis unit can be able to rescue them.”
Recently, the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) was in the news for increasing the cost of renal dialysis from GH¢380 to GH¢765.42. Management noted that this increase had affected six patients.
This matter got national concern as it was revealed that Korle-Bu’s renal unit had been shut down due to arrears. After heavy criticism against the government, the Ministry of Health intervened and managed to get the unit opened to the public.