The management of the Ho Municipal Hospital has said “there was no order to counter instructions from a doctor whatsoever” in order to save the life of a patient who used its facility.

This follows recent publications by some newsprints and on social media headlined: ‘Nurse Disobeys Doctor’s Order To Save A Patient From Death.’

A statement issued by the management of the Ho Municipal Hospital said: “In the said article and stories making rounds on social media, the nurse was purported to have been ordered to administer a medication, Benzylpenicilin, via intramuscular (IM-20mls) but she refused and further sought a second opinion from a doctor who counter-instructed that the medication should be administered intravenously (IV).”

The Hospital stated that: “The Standard Treatment Guidelines of the Ministry of Health and Ghana Health Service, which provides instructions on diagnosis and treatment of various health conditions provides that the medication in question should be administered through the intramuscular (IM) route.”

It further clarified that “the prescription served client was 2 mega units which could be administered via intramuscular as directed by the MOH/GHS Standard Treatment Guidelines.

“The available record confirms that the said client Benard Gorni visited the facility on the 25th February 2021 and was provided care on an outpatient basis. The client, upon interaction with the nurse, was impressed with the care received and consequently decided to honour the gesture with a citation.”

The management of the Hospital indicated that “there was no order to counter instruction from a doctor whatsoever in the incident that occurred in the Hospital as the public is made to believe. Additionally, it is worth noting that the medication in question is not given in millilitres (ml) as misconstrued in the aforementioned publications. The Hospital Management, therefore does not have on record the dosage mentioned to have been prescribed to the patient in question.”

It continued: “Regrettably, preliminary investigations reveal that some altercation might have ensued in the presence of the client and this was exaggerated and maliciously published in the media. It is very unfortunate that some components of the citation to the nurse carried some misleading communication which is very regrettable.”

It added: “The hospital management has nothing against Physician Assistants or the Prescriber in question". 

It assured the public that its “service providers in the Hospital have been working as a team in providing quality care to clients and this development will not change our commitment to duty.”

It added that: “the issue is still being investigated to identify any gaps for appropriate redress.”