President Kabbah Urges For Psychiatrists And Regional Mental Hospital
By Yusuf Alghali

Cognisant of the widespread trauma experienced by many of his compatriots during the just ended brutal civil conflict, President Ahmad Tejan Kabbah has appealed to the delegation of the G77 South-South Healthcare Delivery Programme for assistance towards establishing a second psychiatric hospital for the regions, including providing qualified psychiatrists to manage them.

The G77 South-South Healthcare Delivery Programme is a humanitarian scheme initiated by Heads of State of several developing countries, following a 1999 summit held in Havana, Cuba and in response to local healthcare needs, the programme has already delivered a batch of four ambulances to the government of Sierra Leone as well as a 40ft long container of assorted drugs and medicines.

Speaking at the Lodge Friday during discussions with the Nigerian-born Director General of the programme, Senator Ali Amadu, the President emphasised the need for the setting up of another mental hospital facility with doctors for the provincial regions, to cater for the needs of scores of psychiatric patients who have surfaced after the end of the civil war in Sierra Leone. At present, Sierra Leone can boast of only one mental care facility located in Freetown, and manned by the country's only qualified psychiatrist, Dr. E. Nahim.

President Kabbah went on to restate his appeal for the programme to help in the procurement of diagnostic equipment for local hospitals, to reverse the trend of patients having to travel out of the country seeking expensive diagnostic attention abroad. In anticipation of the arrival of Cuban medical doctors assigned to Sierra Leone under the programme, President Kabbah noted with regrets that there were less than ten doctors running many of the newly rehabilitated hospitals in the twelve districts of the country. He thus suggested that Senator Amadu includes in the programmes' budget for next year, separate funds to make provisions for housing the doctors expected from Cuba.

Senator Amadu, who assured President Kabbah that the programme was actively considering the request for diagnostic machines, expressed delight that the four donated ambulances had already been deployed in strategic areas across the country. He explained that he was in Freetown to ensure that the four French-made ambulances delivered were of the exact specifications as well as to personally oversee the delivery of the third donated 40ft container of assorted drugs.

Other contributing governments to the G77 South-South Healthcare Delivery Programme include South Africa, Libya, Nigeria, Bulgaria and Cuba. .