BUCHANAN, Grand Bassa – Ambulance is normally meant for life-threatening medical emergency but residents of Grand Bassa are living a dangerous life due to lack of sufficient ambulance at the Liberia Government Hospital.
On several occasions, relatives of patients normally purchase their own petrol to transport their patients to referral hospitals in Monrovia but the only functional ambulance of recent had mechanical problem.
Sadly , When there are many emergency cases , the Medical Director of the hospital will normally call ArcelorMittal Liberia to aid them with their ambulance which sometimes leads to the death of citizens .
The Medical Director of the Hospital told Newsmen after a tragic accident which led to the death of five persons on Friday, November 6,2021 that the lack of functional ambulance at the hospital is seriously disturbing.
“We are really struggling for ambulance here and we need Local and National Government attention because when there are many emergency cases , we catch difficulties in transferring them to Monrovia “.
He further stated, “You won’t believe that the hospital’s only functional ambulance we’ve been using has been down for days due to mechanical problem that is yet to be handled.”
Dr. Weidehgar lamented that the sum of US$1,200 is urgently needed to repair the ambulance.
The lack of ambulance and petrol have been an age old problem that was once raised by the former medical Director of the Hospital Abraham Jawara .
During the administration of Dr. Abraham Jawara , on several occasions, he told reporters that the hospital has huge challenges that might lead to a closure or serious increase in death toll.
“There are lots of challenges ranging from the lack of fuel allotment, no essential drug so we are constrained,” Dr. Jawara said, adding that while patients are being told to purchase their own drugs, inpatients have already been asked to transfer to other health centers.
“We have been crediting here and there to the extent that we are not creditworthy anymore. So, we are constrained to run the hospital at this point of time. We are not even able to move our ambulance.”
