The Ahafo Region has not reported any confirmed cases of Monkey Pox and Lassa Fever diseases, Dr Samuel Kwabena Boakye Boateng, the Regional Director of Health Services, has said.
He explained that all three suspected cases of Monkey Pox and one suspected Lassa fever had all tested negative and urged people in the region to remain calm.
Dr. Boateng was addressing the opening session of the 2022 Ahafo Regional Health Sector Performance Review Meeting at Goaso, the regional capital, on the theme: ‘Sustaining Quality of Care for Improved Health Outcomes in the Midst of COVID-19 pandemic.’
Despite Ahafo’s proximity to Ashanti Region, which had recorded two cases, the Regional Health Director, said the region had not recorded any suspected cases of the deadly Marburg virus as well.
That, notwithstanding, Dr. Boateng indicated that the region had 147 suspected cases of Influenza-live illness (ILI) with 57 of the cases testing positive at the region’s sentinel site for ILI at the Goaso Government Hospital.
On the COVID-19 pandemic, he said, though the region had no active cases, it recorded a total of 248 suspected cases through the routine contact tracing activities across the six politically-administrative municipalities and districts.
He added that 58 of the COVID-19 suspected cases tested positive, recording three deaths and, therefore, urged everybody to take precautionary measures against the disease to protect themselves and people around them.
Dr Boateng commended the government for improving health facilities in the region, saying construction works on the Agenda 111 hospital at Kukuom, Mim and Kenyasi as well as the Infectious Disease Centre at the Goaso Government Hospital and other Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) Compounds were progressing.
“The residential accommodation facilities for the Regional Director and his Deputy Directors have been duly handed over. The region has also received various types of logistics largely under the COVID-19 programme and these and other critical equipment have been duly distributed,” Dr. Boateng stated.