By Rita Naa Ayeley Armah
Ghana’s largest retail department store has donated essential medical refrigerators to Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, 37 Military Hospital, Ho Teaching Hospital, and other health facilities across the country.
This move underscores the importance of corporate responsibility in supporting public health.
Mustapha Salifu, Head of Public Relations at Korle-Bu, expressed gratitude for the unexpected donation.
“This was unsolicited. We were there when they invited us and told us they had something for us. When we asked, they informed us about the medical refrigerators,” he said.
These refrigerators are vital for storing medications, blood, and other essential items at the right temperature, ensuring they remain safe for patient use.
“They keep and preserve them at a certain temperature so that, when needed, the items can be administered to patients and save lives,” Salifu explained.
Korle-Bu is a large hospital, serving an average of 1,500 patients daily. Salifu noted that such facilities are crucial for delivering mass services to patients.
“We want more; Korle-Bu is big compared to other hospitals, so we need more of such equipment. We are going to discuss with them and see how they can speed up to get us more,” he added.
He took the opportunity to thank Melcom for their thoughtful donation and urged other corporate organisations to follow suit.
“We also want to use this opportunity to thank them very much for this thoughtful donation and ask other corporate organisations to imitate the good example of Melcom, which has proven to be a good corporate citizens,” he said.
Salifu encouraged well-meaning companies in the country to support public hospitals, emphasising that healthcare is a shared responsibility.
“The government cannot take on this task alone; philanthropic individuals and companies can help,” he added.
According to him, Melcom’s decision to provide medical refrigerators instead of beds, wheelchairs, and other medical items was based on research.
Salifu concluded by highlighting the hospital’s ongoing needs: “We need beds, radiographic equipment, and infrastructure to expand some facilities.”
