Friday, April 6, 2012

A Plea for Support to train football first aiders- The cry for CERT GHANA


Football is the most popular sport in Ghana. The national governing body is the Ghana Football Association. Internationally, Ghana is represented by the male Black Stars and the female Black Queens. The top domestic football league in Ghana is the Glo Premier League. The passion and the unifier of the nation is football.
 However, in recent times, what appears as the passion and the unifier of the nation is a venue of death for some unlucky footballers and funs. Ghana has the history of recording football heinous ever disaster in the world. The May 9,2001 disaster that claimed 120 lives was a black day in the football fraternity to Ghanaians alone but to the world loving soccer funs.
Another reason why this training needs to be organized is on September 3, 2011 when the nation once again lost a football administrator (Alhaj Ibrahim Sly Tetteh )who scouted some of the great players currently in the Black stars.Again a player of Kessben Fc Bartholomew Yeboah died in the hospital after he collapsed in a league of cardiac arrest.
It is in the light of this, that Community Emergency Response Team Ghana would want to seek for support to organize an intensive training for the football fraternity. Basic Life Support and CPR skills will be a key in the training.
We need funding and some medical equipments like 12-lead ECG for the training and checking of players cardiac activity.We have already decided to always send our volunteers to help the football teams at league matches to give first aid to footballers and funs as standby responders.
Community Emergency Response Team Ghana is a nonprofit organization and the first citizen corps in Ghana that seeks to train community volunteers in disaster preparedness and response.
Attached below is our brochure:

A BRIEF NOTE ON CERT GHANA   - BROCHURE
Who We Are: Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), Ghana is a non- profit, non- governmental organization that seeks to manage natural and manmade disasters in Ghanaian communities through community volunteers. CERT, Ghana seeks   to train community volunteers on basic rescue techniques of disaster management. It envisions a Ghana where every individual is entitled to the basic skills and knowledge of disaster management.

Vision: Doing the Greatest Good for the Greatest Number.
Mission Statement: Managing natural and man made disasters through community volunteers who are trained on, first aid and basic rescuing techniques. Health education and setting up mobile clinics to take care of disaster victims post disaster is our hope.
Objectives: CERT ,Ghana seeks to contribute to disaster management and the promotion of the spirit of voluntarism in  Ghanaian communities.
In furtherance of  this   goal CERT, Ghana  seeks to:
             To promote voluntarism and voluntary efforts in the management of community emergencies in cases of natural and man made disasters.
             To help other departments responsible for ensuring public and community safety  through rescue techniques by using the community volunteers as they are nearer to the scenes.
             To train community volunteers in the management of emergencies.
             To support victims to cope with psychological and economic effects of natural and man made disasters and integrate them back to society.



What We Do : CERT Ghana  promote the spirit of volunteerism .Instill  in every Ghanaian that we all have a hand in hometown security and that every community is secured in terms of disaster through its efforts. We share information on the best practices of disaster preparedness in the country through training of community volunteers on basic techniques of disaster management skills. Health Education is also our hope. campaigning on disaster prevention with the right base approach.

Areas  that  We Work : CERT, Ghana’s scope  of work  concentrate on three thematic areas namely :First aid through training of community volunteers on( Basic Life Support and Trauma Life Support), Search and Rescue Techniques through training of volunteers on basic techniques of retrieving victims in building collapse or earthquakes,  Fire suppression is also our hope. Post disaster health needs of victims and Health Education on outbreaks of diseases are the cross-cutting issues and each thematic group  is encouraged to our volunteers to mainstream them. Specifically, programmes and policies of training our volunteers are  within  the national and global frameworks, focusing on issues of disaster preparedness and management through our volunteers who are trained on the basic skills and techniques of crisis or disaster management and approach.
             CERT, Ghana organized Health Outreach programme at Buipe,  a village in northern Ghanthat was hit by flood  last year. A  number  of medical professionals were sent to this village to assess and examine their health needs with first aid treatment. A consultant in Anesthesia and a specialist in Emergency management of Tamale Teaching Hospital was also part of this trip. We sensitized the people on flood and disaster preparedness. This attracted a national attention as the National Television had  a media coverage of the programme.
             Engagement on the training of community volunteers of CERT, Ghana with Crisis commons  in USA.
             CERT, Ghana  has liason with the Ghana Ambulance Service.
Thematic Groups: CERT ,Ghana volunteers  are encouraged to work and attend workshops organized by CERT to enreach their knowledge and skills of disaster preparedness and rapid response based on current and global accepted framework and understanding.
The organization works with Standard Operating Procedure(SOP) document that is similarly used by the Medical Reserve Corp in united State. The organization has a constitution that governs its activities and volunteers are registered.
The organization monitors and analyses policy formulation and implementation and share its findings and makes recommendations on these findings.

THE ORGANISATION INVOLVED:
Membership of  CERT, Ghana comprises mainly  professional volunteers and non professional volunteers, civil society  organizations, community groups, youth groups, development organizations and affiliate members from other organizations.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES:
1. Dr.Adam Abass: Neuro-surgical consultant Tamale Teaching Hospital and University for Development Studies (UDS) Medical School.
2. Chief Alhassan Issahaku: Director for Northern Regional Population Office.
3. Dr. Ahmed Zakariah: Director of Ghana Ambulance Service .
4. Dr. Ibrahim Abubakari: Orthopedic consultant Tamale Teaching Hospital and Medical School of UDS
5. Alhaj Adam Issahaku: A medical practitioner and C.E.O. of   Haj Adams Clinic.
6. Yakubu H. Yakubu: Director CERT, Ghana and a Registered Nurse at the Intensive Care Unit Tamale Teaching Hospital.

Written by:                                                                            
Yakubu H.Yakubu
Director CERT GHANA.
0245115146


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