The Ghana Medical Trust Fund (GMTF) is deepening it’s stakeholder engagement to raise awareness on the Fund as well as the gains and progress made so far in one year of establishment.
The Administrator of Ghana Medical Trust Fund (GMTF) Ms. Adwoa Obuobia Darko Opoku at a Greater Accra Regional Stakeholder Engagement on Thursday stressed that the engagement was necessary to apprice stakeholders on GMTF’s mandate and share with them progress made as well as give guidance to the public on eligibility requirements and how they can access the fund.
She emphasized that 45% of mortality is associated with Non-Communicable diseases (NCDs) hence the Fund, as part of its mandate has donated some medical equipment to Referral Hospitals to help address the burden and strengthen specialized care.
“Our mandate is to address and to ensure cost-effective care and capacity to deliver”, She said.
Touching on the Stakeholder engagement, the Administrator of the Fund, said it was important for the GMTF’s message to reach every Ghanaian who had not yet heard about its work.
She said the perception of Greater Accra as a region of opportunities should not mask the harsh realities confronting families caring for relatives living with non-communicable diseases.
“Even here in Greater Accra, families go through enormous difficulties trying to care for relatives suffering from non-communicable diseases,” she said.
She explained that the GMTF was established to bridge critical gaps in healthcare delivery through interventions in medical equipment, financial support, infrastructure and other areas of specialised healthcare.
Ms Darko-Opoku appealed to individuals, businesses and corporate organisations in the region to support the Fund so it could extend its reach and help save more lives.
‘Protect the Fund’
The Greater Accra Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Robert Amesiya, also called on Ghanaians to “jealously guard” the GMTF, describing it as an important opportunity to strengthen the health system and improve access to critical healthcare services.
He said collective support was essential to ensuring that the Fund achieved its mandate, particularly for people who might otherwise be unable to afford specialised treatment.
The Greater Accra Regional Minister, Hon. Linda Obenewaa Akweley Ocloo, commended President John Dramani Mahama for establishing the GMTF and welcomed the Fund’s decision to embark on a nationwide sensitisation campaign.
She said greater public awareness was critical to ensuring that the Fund’s interventions reached their intended beneficiaries.
She also called for stronger collaboration between the GMTF and Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to prevent duplication of interventions and maximise the
impact of resources.
She assured the Fund of the support of the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council in strengthening collaboration across the region.
The engagement formed part of the GMTF’s nationwide regional sensitisation tour, which seeks to bring the Fund closer to communities, healthcare professionals, traditional authorities and other stakeholders while mobilising broader support for its mandate.
For his part, the Ga Mantse, His Royal Majesty King Nii Teiko Tsuru II, called for a healthcare system in which poverty does not determine who gets life-saving treatment and who is left to struggle with illness.
He said no Ghanaian should be denied quality healthcare simply because they could not afford the cost of treatment, particularly as the cost of specialised medical care continued to place enormous financial pressure on families.
According to him, the establishment of the GMTF was a significant intervention, especially for families struggling to meet the rising cost of specialised healthcare.
He urged stakeholders to take full advantage of the opportunities created by the Fund to ensure that vulnerable Ghanaians were not excluded from quality healthcare because of their financial circumstances.
The Ga Mantse also urged the GMTF to explore opportunities to strengthen maternal healthcare, saying such interventions would complement the Fund’s broader efforts to improve healthcare delivery.
“The Fund must reach the people”, he said.
Source:www.senaradioonline.com
