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A US$325,000 centre built at the Kumasi South Hospital to treat, control and prevent infectious diseases including suspected cases of the dreaded hemorrhagic viral fever, Ebola, has been inaugurated.

The state-of-the-art facility comes with wards, staff changing rooms, laundry and washrooms.

It was funded by the government with support from Kosmos Ghana, an oil company.

Mr. Peter Anarfi-Mensah, the Ashanti Regional Minister, who was on hand to perform the inauguration, said it would significantly help to scale up infectious disease surveillance.

He underlined the need to maintain eternal vigilance and put in place adequate measures to efficiently handle any reported case of the dreadful Ebola infection.

He made reference to neighbouring countries in the West African sub-region – Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, which were recently hard-hit by the disease, and said the establishment of isolation centres proved critical to the international effort at reining in the spread of the viral fever.

The Regional Minister used the occasion to remind the people to keep their environment clean to avoid diseases.

Dr. Adomako Boateng, Deputy Director of Clinical Care at the Hospital, said the outbreak of Ebola in the sub-region, had revealed weaknesses in the health system and brought to the fore the urgent need to set up infectious disease treatment centres.

That, he noted, was vital for the strengthening of the public health care system.

He announced the construction of a three-storey block to provide more space for in-patients and said on completion, it would have the capacity to admit 108 patients.

Mr. Joe Mensah, Vice President of Kosmos Ghana, said the company had already supplied logistics and kits to the Ebola Centre, built in Tema, to deal with any suspected infection.

He pledged continued support towards the development of the nation’s healthcare system.