Staff of the Tamale Teaching Hospital have described head injury as a canker that storms the hospital on a daily basis.

 

It is revealed that on a daily basis, the facility records 10 cases of head injuries within a 12-hour period, with most of them leading to death due to their severity.

 

Due to this, management stormed the Tamale Taxi Rank after a peaceful walk to educate road users about the need to wear crash helmets when riding.

 

According to Dr. Malcom Dery, a medical doctor at the Neurosurgery Unit of the Tamale Teaching Hospital, increased cases of head injuries recorded at TTH stem from motor accidents where the riders were not wearing helmets.

 

Another cause, according to Dr. Dery, is the rampant knockdowns of mostly children who end up with head trauma.

 

“One of the most common head injuries is by motor knockdowns, which needs to be looked at passionately.“

 

Dr. Dery stated that the cost of treating these head injuries is very expensive, hence the need to use the helmet consistently when riding.

 

“When patients come with a head injury, the cost is very high, so we admonish the youth and society in general to wear crush helmets at all times when riding.

 

“We plead with society to also be careful when riding motorbikes and obey traffic regulations, obey the police when they are directing traffic and also it is necessary that patient relatives will support the patient and healthcare professionals in the discharge of their duty”.

 

He further appealed to corporate institutions and philanthropists to help support the management of head injuries at the Tamale Teaching Hospital.

 

He made this known to the media during a health walk as part of the Tamale teaching hospital 50th anniversary celebration this year.

 

On his part, Zuberu Aliu, deputy director of public affairs at the Tamale Teaching Hospital, in outlining the itinerary for the 50th anniversary celebration, disclosed the managements quest to mobilize resources for a state-of-the art pediatric complex.

 

 

“If you come, the pediatric emergency is at one place, the neonatal care unit is also situated somewhere and all other facilities for children are dotted around. This does not give us the quality of care we seek to achieve.”

 

CNR