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EXPOSED!!! — Stench Of Corruption At 37 Military Hospital As Patient Is Asked To Pay Ghc 200 For A Form Costing Ghc 2.50. For Refusing To Pay The Illegal Amount He Was Never Attended To

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Welcome to Ghana — the country where standing up for the right thing gets you in trouble.
Last week actress Lydia Forson was nearly assaulted for standing up for her rights, and it turns out someone else also received severe punishment for standing up for the right thing and refusing to do the wrong thing.
Facebook user Barrister Barnes narrated how he visited the 37 Military Hospital for a medical report and after paying Ghc 10 for a card and Ghc 20 for ‘consultation’, he was asked to pay Ghc 200 to receive the form he needed.
The form, which was issued to him by the police, clearly indicated he was supposed to pay only Ghc 2.50 for the report. However, one by one all doctors insisted he pay the Ghc 200 or he would not get the report he needed.
And for refusing to pay, Barnes had to wait for multiple hours and eventually, had to leave without getting his report.
Amazing that at the 37 Military Hospital, one of our nation’s premiere medical facilities, a group of doctors can decide to not treat a patient because he refused to pay a fee illegally.
It seems the doctors have formed a sort of cabal where if they see you are insisting on your rights then none of them would look at you, no matter what ailment you are bringing to them.
This is clearly corrupt practice but it is the norm in Ghana, and if you refuse to participate in it no one would treat you or provide you the service they are contractually obliged to provide.
As GhanaCelebrities.Com founding editor Chris-Vincent wrote after the Forson assault case, standing for your rights in a place where they aren’t respected is a futile exercise.
It’s a shame that the 37 Military Hospital can stoop to such a level, but this is Ghana and corruption is baked into the very fabric of our existence.
Read the experience of Barrister Barnes below…
So i was issued with a medical report by the police to go to any government hospital. I went to 37 military hospital. Bearing in mind this form is at the expense of the tax payer. When i got there I was told to pay for a card at the cost of 10 cedis and a consultation fee for 20 cedis in order to see the doctor which I duly obliged and paid.
Prior to that I had seen a doctor who told me there was a fee for writing such a report, I told him yes of two cedi 50 peswas. I informed him that being a government official I know how these things work. The minute I said that, his demeanour changed. He asked me to collect my folder and return to the unit and he will in turn refer me to his colleague. I did just that.
I had been told by 3 other members of staff about this so called charge and I kept telling them yes it clearly states on the form that the said fee is Ghc 2.50. After bringing the folder I was asked to see a doctor, the doctor had been informed about my refusal to pay anything more than the Ghc2.50 on the form. The doctor said outright that he was not going to endorse the form unless i paid 200 cedis. I told them what they are requesting for me to pay is not the stipulated amount and I refuse to pay and if they are refusing to endorse the form they should give me their names to make the relevant complaint. They refused to give their names. But i scanned their faces on memory. After flipping out a senior officer came to attend to me and said the matter will be sorted.
The doctor doing what Ghanaians do best when in position of power is to power play and thus said he was all of a sudden attending to emergencies so I should go and sit down. When they find time they will attend to me. This was my punishment for standing up against corruption. The doctor told me categorically that should the case go to court, he will be called as a witness, and as such the two hundred cedis was for his fuel to court. I asked him so what if the case does not go to court? So i was now paying for an uncertainty. An unforeseen scenario type thing. Bearing in my mind I had been at the hospital from 9am and by 2pm these people had refused to attend to me because of my refusal to pay a fee that is illegal. A corrupt practice they are indulging in and now made it a law onto themselves. One told me that is the procedure and regulation here.
What annoyed me was another patient telling me to just pay the money and stop arguing. Like shut up if u have nothing better to add. They saw me sitting there for all those hours with my 5year old child. I handed the lady at the reception my folder and told her after paying for consultation you have refused outright to offer the said services. Take the folder and you will hear from me in the press. I will not keep quiet about this, and the rest of Ghana must know the stink and rot in here. She was pleading with me, but I handed over the folder and left.
These doctors had made themselves mini gods. I left without being attended to. This president says we must report corrupt officials and am starting with those I dealt with today. Why don’t I also take money from witnesses for the purpose of court attendance. This filth and cancer must be eradicated fast. I am shaming 37 military hospital and this is only the start. Please share this post. The pic is of the unit I attended today. I cannot change Ghana on my own, but I can take the right steps to ensure I do not become part of the problem, even if is at the root of my detriment. Am tired of this rubbish. I stand for change!!!!!!
An advocate for change!!!



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