Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital: Bed Occupancy and Manpower Statistics (1991 and 1992)

In 1991; the daily bed occupancy rate for the hospital was 75.2 per cent with bed turnover rate of 2 per month and bed turnover interval of 4 days. There was a daily average of 57 floor-patients in the hospital. Nurses and other medical staff on admission formed about 2 per cent of the daily population. The seriously ill patients formed 6.4 per cent of the patient population. The average daily patient population was 1166 with average daily admissions of 92 patients (SD 21.2); discharges of 87 (SD 9.7) and the daily deaths of 11 (SD 3.7). The corresponding figures for 1992 were very close. In 1992; daily patient population was 1151; daily admissions was 103; discharges 90 and daily deaths was 11. Thus. about 10 per cent of the hospitals daily patient population is admitted daily and about 1 per cent die daily. With respect to the individual wards or departments; the highest daily admission rate was at Chenard Ward A; for gynaecological emergencies with about 10 patients a day. Children's wards followed with a rate of about 5 per day; then Medical wards with about 3 per day; Maternity wards and Surgical wards with 2 per day and Orthopaedic wards (Allied Surgical wards C; D; H; I and N) with about 1 per day. The highest number of deaths occurred in emergency wards; (Children's emergency; Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU); Surgical/Medical emergency; Korle-Bu Polyclinic and Accident centre). The ranking order of departments with deaths in the wards were Children's; Medical; Chest; Surgical and Obstetrics (Maternity). On average there were 16 nurses and 7 orderlies to a ward running three shifts a day. Excluding housemen; Surgical wards had an average of 3 doctors to a ward; Medical wards had 8 doctors per ward; Obstetrics and Gynaecology had 6 doctors to a ward; Children's block had 8 doctors to a team and Allied Surgical wards had an average of 6 doctors to a ward.The policy implications of these statistics are discussed

Nutritional status and levels of liver enzymes in Ghanaian alcoholics

The well nourished alcoholics appeared to have some protection from alcoholic liver damage; although their fat levels were higher which may predispose to cardiac disease. Alcoholics therefore; show some degree of impaired liver function which is more severe among those who are malnourished