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The Amansie West District recorded 3,000 cases of teenage pregnancy in 2014, the District Director of health, Mr. Dominic Dorbbin, has disclosed, and attributed the situation to the high rate of galamsey activities in the district.

Mr. Dorbbin made the disclosure at the 2014 Annual Performance Review Meeting of the Amansie West District health Directorate, held at Manso-Nkwanta, which was attended by chiefs and their queen mothers, assembly members, heads of departments and staff of the Ghana health Services.

The District Health Director also said the district recorded 619 cases of abortion in 2014, being the highest in the region after Kumasi, and appealed to queen mothers to educate young girls on the dangers of abortion.

According to him, the district recorded that still births had increased from 47 cases in 2013 to 77 in 2014, which, he said, was due to delays before pregnant women report to hospital to deliver.

Mr. Dorbbin also said the district recorded 98% of polio cases in 2014, and further disclosed that HIV/AIDS cases had risen from 114 in 2013 to 126 in 2014.

He mentioned some of the challenges facing the District Health Directorate as lack of accommodation for health staff, poor road networks, lack of vehicles to move health personnel from community to community, inadequate funds for the running of the administration, and the delay of payment of National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) claims.

The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Amansie West, Mr. Alex Kwame Bonsu, on his part, commended staff of the health Directorate for their hard work and dedication.

He disclosed that the District Assembly had constructed a children’s ward and toilet facilities for the Manso-Nkwanta health Center, and further constructed a number of CHIPS compounds towards improving the health needs of the people in the district.

Meanwhile, the Member of Parliament for the Amansie West Constituency, Mrs. Grace Addo, has procured two ambulances for the Essuowin and Manso-Nkwanta Health Centers from her MPs Common Fund.

The MP has also provided a water tank for the Manso-Abori health Center to support the health needs of the people.