Ghana Health Service signs MOU with Christian Health Service providers in Upper East (Friday, March 30, 2012)

Story: Benjamin Xornam Glover, Bolgatanga The Upper East Regional Health Directorate and the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at improving the cooperation, creating synergy between the two entities and enhance health service delivery benefits to the people in the region in general devoid of conflict. The CHAG institutions comprise the Presbyterian Health Service, the Navrongo-Bolgatanga Diocesan Catholic Health Service and the Anglican Health Service. The MOU would raise the level of healthcare provision at the sub-district level, ensure effective monitoring and Supervision, streamline finance and logistics issues, addressed the issues of staff postings, promotion, training and development, management of interpersonal relationships, conflict resolution amongst others all with the aim of ensuring the best working mechanisms optimizing health service delivery in the region. The Regional Director of Health Service, Dr. John Koku Awoonor Williams said the signing of the MOU will significantly benefit the health sector in the region since it will address the many conflict among the partners who are all engaged in delivering health services to the people of the region. He noted that in the past, things have been very difficult in terms of running diverse range of health services in a very complex region like Upper East, even though a small and compact region. Dr. Awoonor-Williams emphasized that MOU by themselves to not work since they are just are mere documents that serves as guidelines to steer a course rather it will take a lot of commitment and dedication of all players to ensure it success. “Ghana Government put the health sector implementation issues in the hands of the Regional Health Directorate of GHS and therefore we have to build linkages with other service providers and once we respect those structures and moves towards working together, we can solve these conflicts”, he said. Dr. Awoonor-Williams said GHS has provided logistics to some of the CHAG institution in the past and will continue to do that as and when they have them for the total improvement of the health service in the region, stressing that these are all targeted at solidifying a total health service delivery and helping to achieve the Millennium Development Goals relating to health. To that end, he disclosed that the Regional Health Directorate has just taken a policy decision that any gynecologist that comes to the Upper East Region will be posted to the Bawku Hospital because that is the place the region is recording the highest rates of maternal mortality. He tasked the Municipal and District Directors of Health Services to study the document very well to ensure a successful implementation and address the challenges and also ensure a realignment of service provision. Present at the signing ceremony included The Chairperson of the Upper Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Rev. Esmund Nagba, The Catholic Bishop of the Navrongo-Bolgatanga Diocese, Most Rev. Alfred Agyenta, and the Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Tamale, Rt. Rev. Hon. Dr. Jacob K. Ayeebo who signed on behalf of their respective health services. The Chairperson of the Upper Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Rev. Esmund Nagba said the MOU will put to rest some of the unhealthy, unnecessary and unintended competition among the CHAG facilities and the Ghana Health Services Bishop Agyenta for his part and speaking for the other service providers said the MOU will promote cooperation and addressed some challenges and conflicts experienced in the past. “Wherever there is clarity of guidelines, conflicts can easily be avoided”, he said. -End-