Ralph St. Williams was in the news recently for unenviable reasons. He allegedly assaulted a nurse at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, also known as Ridge Hospital.
Following the alleged assault on a rotational nurse at the facility Rejoice Tsotso Bortei by the suspect the Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandor was slammed for appearing not to show concern about the incident. He was captured exchanging pleasantries with the suspect when he should have rather expressed disappointment at his conduct.
When a committee was set up by the minister to probe the incident many wrote it off as of no consequence… it would be a sham.
The report is out and according to snippets in the media it contradicts the earlier diagnosis that the lady suffered a shoulder fracture in the course of the assault.
The Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) Jefferson Asare has challenged the report pointing out that the lady was diagnosed with polycontusion.
He added that the report challenged the observation of professionals who diagnosed the complainant.
The bottom-line of the report is that the lady’s ordeal was nowhere near what was presented by equally qualified doctors.
While the GRNMA regional chairman is unhappy that an earlier diagnosis has been disputed by the ministerial committee set up to probe the incident we think that the point to be made here is that the degree of harm does not matter… it does not matter whether she even had a bruise or not.
What matters is that the nurse was assaulted by somebody while on duty at a medical facility.
Even in the theatre of war there is a respected convention that medical facilities should be spared attacks. Indeed enemy soldiers when they are captured enjoy medical treatment by their captors.
And so for somebody under our circumstances to proceed to a hospital and assault a nurse the matter should not be treated with kids’ gloves. It does not matter whether she suffered a fracture or not.
We are disappointed that officialdom is seeking to douse the seriousness of the subject with a view to letting the suspect off the hook.
Those who expressed misgivings about the outcome of the ministerial committee were right.
Thank God the nurse has turned to the courts for redress.
We are in a civilized society regulated by law. We are not in the jungle where the survival of the fittest is the prevailing standard.
Those who because of their proximity to the corridors of power think they can do whatever they like and go scot free must have a rethink.
From all indications the health minister would explore ways of killing the case but Ghanaians are watching keenly.
