Some women have been forced to lie on the bare floor with their newborns at the Tamale Teaching Hospital in the Northern Region due to the unavailability of beds.

When Citi News visited the facility, most women were seen on the floor with their newborn babies.

One of the mothers, who complained to Citi News, appealed to the government to provide adequate beds for the hospital.

“We came yesterday [Wednesday], and delivered here. We don’t have beds and are lying on the floor. Our waists are paining us. How to even sit down is very difficult for us,” she said.

Reacting to the situation, the Public Relations Officer for the Tamale Teaching Hospital, Mohammed Migdad, explained that the current congestion challenges are a result of referrals compelled by the anaesthetist’s strike.

“It is not a regular feature. It happens once in a while,” he said.

Mr. Migdad also said the hospital believes that “the patient is better off on the ground than being sent back home.”

He further urged the government to upgrade some hospitals in Tamale to help deal with the pressure the Tamale Hospital is faced with.

“Maybe the other health facilities in the Metropolis should be upgraded and expanded in order to absorb the pressure. TTH, regardless of the expansion you do, cannot be the only referral facility in the entire five regions of the north,” Mr. Migdad said.