Third from left: Alexander Abban, Farid Fezoua and Sulemana Abubakar at the exhibition centre after the opening
General
Electric (GE) Healthcare has begun discussions with stakeholders in the health
sector to drive conversations around sustainable innovative healthcare solutions to help
progress Ghana’s Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
The two-day event, which is the
first to be held in the country, will see policy makers, healthcare
professionals, decision makers, academia, investors and financing institutions,
discuss key topics such as ‘Structuring
Innovative Healthcare Financing Solutions; Ghana’s Vision for UHC; The Future
of Radiology With Artificial Intelligence (AI); ‘Healthcare Technology
Innovations’, among other topics, under the broad theme: ‘Elevating Healthcare Through
Collaborations’.
The
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of General Electric African region, Farid Fezoua,
expressed delight at the hosting of the event in the country, which he said is
in line with GE’s commitment to addressing the barriers to healthcare through
sustainable innovative technologies.
He
stated that for a continent that has low financial investment in its health
sector consideration its high burden of diseases, GE has been working with
government to drive access to quality and affordable healthcare in the region.
Mr.
Fezoua further added that GE’s role in the
attainment of the UHC by 2030 has not only been the supply of technological
equipment needed, but also the training of healthcare staff in its utilisation
and maintenance.
“So, working with governments and other partners we
develop modules to help them in capacity building and we don’t leave their side
we provide a holistic solution and we measure the outcome,” he said.
“Promoting
health for all is key in accelerating Ghana’s vision for Universal Health
Coverage,” indicated Eyong Ebai, General Manager, GE Healthcare West Central
Africa & French sub-Sahara Africa.
He
said GE has contributed to enhancing healthcare delivery in the country, citing
the upgrading of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital’s radiotherapy centre and
equipping the Ridge Hospital with GEHC diagnostic imaging, life care solutions,
project management and financing support.
“GE Healthcare, in collaboration with the Ministry of
Health and the Ghana Health Service is also implementing the Vscan Access Task
Shifting Programme across 125 of Ghana’s 216 districts, to train and equip
healthcare professionals at the primary healthcare level with portable
ultrasound. As a result, 1.5 million expectant Ghanaian women are expected to
benefit from the initiative by 2020,” he disclosed.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GE Ghana, Sulemana Abubakar, observed
that the strides of GE in Ghana has been made possible by the
commitment to timely long-term services maintenance through investment in localised
logistics and spare parts inventory, and a local WCA service centre which has
provided job opportunities for over 15 field service engineers and over 20
business support personnel.
“This
is true localisation. This is
a testament of our role as a global leader with local presence to drive better
outcomes for people in the markets in which we operate,” he pointed out.
The Deputy Minister of Health, Alexander Abban,
emphasized the open-door policy of government for continuous collaboration with
the private sector to enhance healthcare delivery and access in the country.
“We are proud that Ghana is hosting the GE Healthcare dialogues to provide a platform for the industry stakeholders to advance the country’s healthcare agenda,” he said.
By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri & Sarah PlatzC
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