Progress Report on Asantehene’s ‘Heal KATH’ Project

The ‘Heal KATH’  project, spearheaded by the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has made significant strides in revitalising the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi.

Kwame Frimpong, Head of Public Affairs at KATH, provided a comprehensive update on the extensive work underway to overhaul the hospital’s aging infrastructure in an interview on Opemsuo Radio’s Nkwantannaso with Kofi Boakye.

Frimpong reported that the first phase of the project is currently ongoing, with noticeable improvements in the hospital’s ability to withstand the rainy season.

“Our blocks A, B, C, D, the concrete roofs, when it rains sometimes even if rains have stopped for about a week to 2 weeks, it will still be leaking on people in the wards. That shows the extent that the blocks were destroyed. When we started, we realised that making that the first phase will help us so we started with that and for the first time in several years, we have entered rainy season and ….”

“It used to leak on both staff and patients. The good news is that with the first phase, we have entered rainy season for a number of months now but people can testify that even though we are not done, the project has been beneficial.”

Other key upgrades include the replacement of old electrical wiring and plumbing pipes, the installation of new oxygen ports for each bed, and the introduction of an air cooling system.

The renovation also involves fitting new mosquito nets on windows and upgrading flooring to hospital-grade tiles.

The expansion of washroom facilities is another significant improvement, increasing the number of water closets from three to six and doubling the number of washroom stalls in the wards.

One of the project’s challenges has been the relocation of patients due to space constraints. The hospital repurposed areas previously used for COVID-19 patients to manage the renovation.

“The problem we had was where to move the patients, because of the referrals from the other regions, the place is always choked. So we were considering to see if we could even move some of the patients to ther hospitals. Even one ward, we couldn’t get a hospital to take them to so we turned to where we used to keep COVID patients. We arranged the place and moved those in A3, A4, A5, so these wards are those we started with.

Despite these hurdles, Frimpong praised the Asantehene’s leadership, which have been crucial in advancing the project.

Frimpong emphasized that the ‘Heal KATH’ renovation is not just about improving conditions for patients but also enhancing the working environment for staff.

On November 10, 2023, Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II officially launched an initiative to mobilise US$10 million for the renovation of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region.

Hailing Otumfuo for the project, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of KATH, Prof Otchere Addai-Mensah, said the renovation had been on the drawing board of the hospital Board for the last 50 years but had to be shelved due to lack of funds.

Story by Adwoa S. Danso