A new incinerator has been built for the Accra Psychiatric Hospital to treat its infectious waste after 20 years of medical care without proper waste management.
The commissioning of the facility will stop the Hospital from burning its medical waste in an open pit, endangering the lives of the staff, clients, and communities around.
The incinerator which costs GhS200, 000, and can incinerates 150 kilogrammes of medical waste at a time, was provided by the Rotary Club of Accra La East, under its potential service project.
It was built by a technical team from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and financially supported by Pergola Creations Ltd, Bethel Logistics Company Ltd and contributions from members of Accra La East Rotary.
Dr Kojo Marfo, Director, Accra Psychiatric Hospital, who commended members of the Accra La East Rotary and other supporters, said the incinerator was desperately needed.
He said it was important that as a health facility, the Hospital disposed off its waste p
roperly.
‘Our compound is huge and it is difficult to guard it, let alone our waste matter. Even when we were managing patients with COVID-19, we were not properly disposing off our medical waste. It was God that helped us at that time to be honest with you,’ Dr Marfo said.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), he said the old incinerator could not manage the toxic fumes, but the new one had been built with modern technology that treated toxic fumes, making the environment safer.
The Director said Management of the Hospital was developing sporting infrastructure to improve the quality of mental care delivery and called on corporates for support.
Mrs Emelia Sackey, Rotary President, Accra La East, said one of the seven focus areas of the Club was disease prevention and treatment whilst supporting the environment, and that the provision of the incinerator for the Hospital this year was a priority.
She said the Club chose the Accra Psychiatric Hospital after some assessments, which revealed that
the Facility was polluting its immediate environment.
‘This will save a lot of cost for them because sometimes they may have to transport their waste. Last year, we donated some medical equipment to them and so this Hospital is dear to our heart. This is our widow’s mite in promoting mental health,’ Mrs Sackey said.
Nii Emmanuel Martey Agyiri, Project Chair for 2023 and 2024, Rotary Club of Accra La East, said the Club would work with the CSIR to ensure that the facility was maintained.
Source: Ghana News Agency