Former Minister for Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation, Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, has disclosed that he personally financed the inception of the National Cardiothoracic Centre at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in April 1992.
In an interview with the media, the former head of the Centre shared the remarkable journey behind its establishment, revealing that upon his return from Germany, he arrived without any personal belongings as he had sold everything to kickstart the Centre’s operations.
“When I came down from Germany, I didn’t even come down with any household items, I used all my money to buy medical equipment to start that [National Cardiothoracic Centre] Centre.
“The government was not prepared to build a place for the [National Cardiothoracic Centre] centre and the Germans gave us some money for the equipment and the government was not ready and I had to use my own money with others who helped and then we built the [National Cardiothoracic Centre] centre.”
Professor Frimpong-Boateng also disclosed that the Centre had recently encountered challenges that were actively being addressed to ensure that Ghanaians receive the necessary cardiac medical care when required.
“I knew that they had problems and I know they are being addressed gradually. There were quite a number of issues that need to be addressed and they are being addressed.”