The First ever Catholic Health Centre, St Lucas in Wiaga, a community in the Builsa North District of the Upper East Region has been upgraded to a hospital status.
It was built in 1950 by the Roman Catholic Mission with support from indigenes of the community with the aim of meeting the health needs of the people. Founder of the Health Centre is Rev.
Father Phillipe Marneff. The Health facility is a member of the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG).
The Hospital has a catchment area of about 1,600 kilometers square and serves about 3,000 people with staff strength of 184, comprising 158 on Government payroll and 26 paid through the Internally Generated Funds of the Hospital.
The hospital currently has a 36-bed capacity. The newly upgraded Hospital provides special services like gynecology and surgical services but faces the challenges of inadequate staff accommodation and insufficient critical staff.
Catholic Bishop of the Navrongo-Bolgatanga Diocese, Right Rev. Alfred Agyenta, said the Catholic Church will continue to partner government to promote quality healthcare delivery.
The Deputy Director Clinical Care at the Upper East Regional Health Directorate, Dr. Abdul- Razark Dokurugu, said the health directorate is making efforts to ensure that the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3, which sought to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all and at all ages is achieved by 2030.
The Deputy Upper East Regional Minister, Frank Fuseini Adongo, thanked the Catholic Church for supporting government initiatives over the years.