By Prince J Musa in Kenema
As a result of a rise in the number of stroke patients in the district, the management of Kenema Government Hospital with support from Kings Global Partnership has opened a modern stroke unit at the Kenema Government Hospital, east of Sierra Leone.
The stroke unit was officially opened to the public on the 23rd December 2023.
In his opening statement, the Medical Superintendent of the Kenema Government Hospital, Dr. Abdulai Tejan Jalloh noted that as part of the mandate of the Ministry of Health and Sanitation to expand health care services, the hospital Management initiated creation of a unit that will handle cases of stroke. He stated that the unit will focus on prevention, acute management of patients, their rehabilitation and restoration including continuous medical education.
He also stated that the health care management will focus on research that will help focus on decision- making, and commended Kings College for Global Health Partnership for the support provided.
Dr. Jalloh appreciated the district Medical Officer of Kenema for conceiving the idea of a stroke unit which is lacking in government health facilities and assured the public that with support from partners, they can now boast of having modern stroke equipment.
In his statement, the District Medical Officer (DMO) in Kenema, Dr. Donald Samuel Grant said though there have been many challenges in the district in terms of health care services, as a team they have been pushing hard to make improvements and that the stroke unit created in the hospital will help change the outcome of stroke patients coming for services.
He described stroke as a sudden attack on humans that lead to malfunctioning of the limbs and even the mouth, saying the new unit will help quickly to manage stroke clients and commended the management of the hospital for proactive action in getting the facility in Kenema.
The DMO appealed to the health workers especially those attached to the stroke unit to change their attitude as their behavior would give confidence in the system. He called on partners especially MSF and other institutions for more support, saying a well-equipped hospital will help reduce some of the burden on people going far distances to access health care services.
Kenema District Council deputy Chairperson, Francess Jambawai, referred to the stroke unit as hope to the hopeless, adding that stroke patients normally think of their demise instead of recovery due to treatment facilities.
She implored the Nurses to be considerate in dealing with the sick, especially many patients come to hospital already traumatized, noting that they will be rewarded by God.
Commissioning the stroke Unit, the Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr. Mustapha Kabba commended the hospital management for transforming good innovative ideas into reality by giving Kenema government hospital a new facelift. He stated that the facility will help to minimize patients dying of partial stroke.
He assured the hospital management that come 2024; they should expect to benefit from more medical support to ensure that the hospital stands on a better footing.
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