Ghana has recorded its first medical drone crash since its operations commenced on Wednesday, April 24, 2019.
According to reports, the Zipline medical drone which was flying to distribute essential emergency medical supplies crashed on a farm in the Mampong-Dawu Valley in the Eastern Region.
It is unclear which facility the drone was directed to, but officials from the National Disaster Management Organisation (NDAMO) rushed to the scene to rescue it after it crashed.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo officially launched the medical drones for the distribution of essential emergency medical supplies to various health facilities across the country on Wednesday, April 24, 2019.
After the launch, Zipline officially flew its first drone to deliver vaccines to the New Tafo Hospital in the Eastern Region.
The first deployment took place at Zipline’s first distribution center at Omenako, a town in the Suhum municipality in the Eastern Region on Wednesday.
The Omenako project site, is to serve areas within the Eastern Region, including the Afram Plains, the Volta Region, parts of Greater Accra and the Ashanti regions.
Among the emergency medical supplies to be distributed are blood and other medications on request from a medical facility within designated areas.
The project is expected to help transform Ghana’s health delivery system.
It is also expected to be a major complement for the health sector because it will help deliver emergency essential drugs and blood to deprived areas of the country effectively, faster and relatively cheaper.
