Tarkwa (Western Region) – The people of Akyempim, a mining town near Tarkwa, prefer going to fortune-tellers and quack doctors for treatment when they fall ill than going to the clinic.
They would go to such places first and would only seek medical treatment at the clinic in the town when their situation gets worse.
Mr Wilson Enyi Okpa, a medical assistant in charge of the Satellite Goldfields Limited (SGL) clinic, said in an interview that attendance at the clinic is very poor, saying that sometimes for about three or four days running, nobody would attend the clinic.
He said although treatment at the clinic is not free of charge, treatment there is relatively cheaper and better.
SGL management is not happy about the situation and has been organising durbars to educate the people about the dangers of not seeking medical treatment.
The company sited the clinic in the heart of the town to encourage the people to gain easy access to medical treatment, he added.
Mr Okpa called on non-governmental organisations and the Ministry of Health to intervene to save the people from the “clutches” of the quacks.
