Madam Akolpoka Akolbila, a 49-year-old woman from Tindonsobligo, a suburb of Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region, is in dire need of GHC45, 000.00 to undergo knee surgery.
Madam Akolbila is suffering from a swollen and painful knee condition because of arthritis which has made it difficult for her to walk for the past one year.
According to the World Health Organisation, Arthritis is the swelling and tenderness of one or more joints. The main symptoms of arthritis are joint pain and stiffness, which typically worsen with age.
When Madam Akolbila visited the Ultima Platz Hospital at Zuarungu in the Bolgatanga East District in May 2022, she was informed that there was fluid in the knee joint and the issue required surgery to enable her walk without pain and difficulty.
A letter dated October 19, 2022, and signed by Dr Abel Benjamin Tunni, the Medical Director and Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgeon of the hospital said Madam Akolbila “will require a total knee arthroplasty with prosthesis so that she can walk without pain.
“The cost of the implant is GHC45,000.00 which is not covered under the National Health Insurance Scheme,” it said.
Madam Akolbila told the Ghana News Agency that, due to her inability to afford the cost of the treatment, she had been battling with the condition for over a year now and it was killing her silently.
She said the disease was spreading within the knee and there was the need to have surgery done as soon as possible but she was handicapped.
She said the condition had confined her to the house and she could not undertake any work to support her family.
Madam Akolbila has four children and used to engage in subsistence farming during the rainy season and weave straw baskets during the dry season to support her family while her husband is a security guard (watchman).
“I am appealing to everyone around the world who can help to have mercy upon me and come to my aid,” she appealed.
GNA