Address Delivered by PROF. Otchere Addai-Mensah, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital
ADDRESS DELIVERED BY PROF. OTCHERE ADDAI-MENSAH, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER (CEO) OF THE KOMFO ANOKYE TEACHING HOSPITAL (KATH) AT THE ANNUAL THANKSGIVING SERVICE, JOINT STAFF RECEPTION, BEST STAFF & LONG SERVICE AWARDS CEREMONY OF THE HOSPITAL HELD ON FRIDAY, 20TH JANUARY, 2023
It is my pleasure, and I dare say my honour, to welcome all of you to the maiden three-tier ceremony of the hospital, which is the Annual Thanksgiving Service, Joint Staff Reception and Best Staff & Long Service Awards programme of the hospital since my assumption of duty as the CEO of this great hospital.
Nana Chairman, Hon. Ashanti Regional Minister, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, upon my assumption of office as KATH CEO on 1st December, 2022, I had no illusions about the enormity of the task ahead. In acknowledgement of this, I have made every effort to meet all the key stakeholders in this hospital since my assumption of duty to engender a collective vision and drive to transform this hospital into a resilient and a compassionate tertiary facility that the people of this region and indeed Ghana so deserve.
The task of transforming the hospital into an elite tertiary medical centre is not going to be an easy walk in the park. It is going to take a lot of hard work, steely determination and personal and collective sacrifices to achieve that goal. Since my assumption of duty, for the first time in the contemporary history of this hospital, I have instituted weekend and holiday duty roster for all the Directors.
As my Directors and I put in these efforts and make personal sacrifices for the good of this hospital, let me state without any hesitation that I do not expect anything less from the staff. Strict discipline will be upheld and as long as I remain the CEO of this hospital, I will never relent or lose fire on this.
In challenging our doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health professionals to go the extra mile, my management will do everything possible to provide them with the tools, material and financial motivations to deliver, including granting greater operational and financial autonomy to the directorates and units and a performance-based incentive scheme.
As a facility that receives referrals from 13 out of the 16 regions in Ghana, KATH and its staff with the limited facilities available have been under severe strain for years. Fixing the sorry state of facilities at the hospital is going to require the contributions of philanthropic individuals and corporate entities in the country and beyond, and a special campaign will be launched to allow private individuals and corporate institutions to adopt the various medical wards and blocks for comprehensive renovation.
In spite of the difficult economic environment of 2022, management, with the support of the Board, conferred special honours on members of staff who dedicated their working lives to the hospital or made special contributions in 2022. In all, 21 of the longest serving members of staff were recognized and honoured, alongside 19 category winners assessed by a committee of their peers.
I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all individuals and organizations who contributed to making the 2022 awards ceremony possible, including Old Mutual, KATH Co-operative Credit Union, SAG, Vic Bans Pharmacy and Gilat Chemist Ltd.
Before I conclude my address, I am happy to announce that the Board has approved an increment in the payment of end of year staff get-together allowance from Ghc200.00 to Gh₵250.00 per each staff and the payment of the long awaited 13 month salary for members of the Health Services Workers Union (HSWU).
Once again, I wish all of you a Happy, Prosperous and Fulfilling New Year. I thank you for your attention and May God bless us all.
