By: Emmanuel wise Jipoh|Contributor
Residents of Kpatole clan, Salala district, lower Bong county are crying out to the Government of Liberia to assists the Kpatole Clan, only run Clinic, Tonita Medical Clinic, in Flehla, Bong County, with Ambulance and other medical supply, as a means of saving lives of its citizens in that part of the Country.
The mountain call, was made after a patient died upon arrival at the Tonita Medical Clinic, on Tuesday, April 13, due to lack of Ambulance in the District, while enroute to the local medical facility.
Identify as Manzah Tartee, age: 94, a resident of Copper-ta Community, at least 43km from the Tonita Clinic in Flehla town, Bong county, died as result of shortness of breath, at around 1pm Liberian time upon arrival at Clinic, due to the unavailability of an Ambulance as the patient travel on Motorbike.
Family source told Liberia Public Radio, that the decease Tartee, has reportedly been suffering from dierrehea and has taken series of medicines to prevent a stomach running at her home as a result of lack of road connectivity and lack of Ambulance to reach out to the Tonita Medical Clinic, the only nearby Medical facility in Kpatole Clan, Salala District, lower Bong County.
An eyewitness who helped to rescue oldma Tartee to the clinic in an interview with LPR said there was no ambulance or vehicle in the district to convey the woman.
At the time of Manzah Tartee sad demise, there were already a team of Health practitional from the Christian Emergency Relief team, CERT International in partnership with the GSA road Church of Christ, on ground carrying out free medication to the people of Flehla, but was unable to revise the late Tartee, who had travel from a distance on Motorbike with severes Stomach pain in search of Medical survival.
Its sadden that we have lost a life, here while our team is carrying out free medication for the rural people, said Pastor Alfred Beyan of the GSA Road Church of Christ. we’re deeply sorrow for the incident, this just show how our people are suffering, he said.
This is one main reason, we as a Church have come to reach out to our people in the rural with free medical assistance as part of God works, Monrovia isn’t Liberia and there’s need handout to our people in the rural area, who are face with so much challenges.
“We feel great with the free medical service, and believe has helped to improve, the health of some of our people today, and we hope that God continue to strengthen our engagement to help improve the health of our people,” he said.
For his part, the Public Health Officer in charge of the Tonita Medical Clinic in Flehela, Bong County, John B. Travis, express frustration over the death of the late, Manzah Tartee and stressed the need for better access to health care, that will save lives of its citizens.
“On daily basis people visit the facility but because of poverty some don’t come except when the situation becomes worse, maybe they have been sick for a long time. We don’t have a resident doctor, no Ambulance, medicines for our people to survive, our clinic is challenges, Travis Stressed.
The death of the old woman, is all just sadden, “This is what we got to go through to get someone out, our people travel by walking some times motorbikes to reach out, to the clinic to save life, at time the person die, before arrival, just example of what you saw here today, Travis intoned.
“If you get sick in the nearby town, like Cooper-ta, where oldma, Manzah Tartee has come from and other surrounding villages, you end up dying while in route, because they is no Ambulance to speed you up,” some of our people don’t bother to come and just prefer to die at home, because at time if you sacrifice to reach at the Clinic, mostly we are lack of drugs to cater to them and in the end the person expire, which is totally frustrating,” said John Travis.
We need serious assistance, our people are dying. Something needs to be done, we need Ambulance, and a residence doctor to cater to our people, please President George Weah, see the needs of your people, Travis added.
Family source of the late, Manzah Tartee said the 94-year-old, had went to a local drugs store in the community at 9 a.m. Tuesday because of the severe stomach pain and had no way out to reach out to the Tonita Medical facility, because there was no vehicle around, neither a search-and-rescue team to save the old woman life.
There’s no Ambulance and there’s also no rescue team to save her life, by the time we arrive at the clinic on a motorbike, we had already lost her, Tenneh a relative to Liberia Public Radio in sorrow.
Meanwhile, Information gathered by Liberia Public radio indicates that the entire Lower Bong County, has been without an Ambulance for decades and often do a referal to hospital in Gbarnga or Monrovia, as the patient is made to wait, two three days with the sickness.
Kpatole clan, Salala district, which shares a boundary with Lower Margibi and Bong County, lacks an Ambulance creating an uncomfortable situation for citizens in that part of Liberia.
Patients in critical conditions are transported in Commercial vehicles. Several deaths have occurred in the districts as a result of the situation.
Several residents of Flehla told LPR that, the situation is creating distress for healthcare in the district.
John B. Travis, OIC in charge of the Tonita Medical Clinic, said several efforts by writing letters to the district assembly, government of Liberia and NGO’s but to no avail.
Lack of Ambulance in some rural part of across the country has been a major of concern.
