The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has suggested local authorities be entrusted with monitoring of the use of ambulances in the country since the current system is proving to be ineffective.
His comments followed several reports of misuse of the vehicles.
In a viral video, a journalist reported of ambulances allegedly left unattended to, with some parts missing, depriving patients of the much-needed medical emergency services.
Speaking in an interview with Asaase News, the general secretary of the GMA, Dr. Justice Yankson, said the current system of running the service from Accra is not effective.
“I think that the assembly should also assist, especially in the maintenance and ensuring that these vehicles are always on the road because it serves the very people that are to be catered for at the local level. At the national level, you might not be able to know what is happening in every district”
He insisted that “everybody should be interested so that if for some reason in your community the ambulance is out of use for a certain number of days, then definitely there should be some questioning as to where the ambulance is and what is happening to it”.
It would be recalled that, similar viral video emerged in which some people were seen parking bags of cement into one of the state owned ambulances.
This received several condemnations from the public, forcing the Ghana Ambulance Services to issue statement denying the vehicle was part of its fleet at the time.
It said the vehicle was at the time, in custody of a mechanic who was supposed to be working on it.
