(Photo: EFSTH)
By Landing Ceesay
The Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital (EFSTH) has announced that the Gambia got its first ever medical oxygen generated from an oxygen plant.
“For the very first time in the history of The Gambia, medical oxygen is being generated from an oxygen plant within a government health facility – EFSTH Ndemban Bakau Center! EFSTH is spending over one million Dalasis on medical oxygen on a monthly basis to meet the demands of patients who need oxygen,” EFSTH said in a statement on its official Facebook page today.
The Office of the CMD, Management, staff and patients of EFSTH are grateful for the foresight of the Ministry of Health under the leadership of Hon. Dr Ahmadou Lamin Samateh and TIKA Gambia office for this laudable achievement, the statement added.
Research shows that medical oxygen is high purity oxygen used for medical treatments and is developed for use in the human body.
Medical oxygen cylinders contain a high purity of oxygen gas; no other types of gases are allowed in the cylinder to prevent contamination.
There are additional requirements and rules for medical oxygen, including requiring a person to have a prescription to order medical oxygen.