clinic

The Shekhina clinic is situated in Tamale (population 150 000), in the north of Ghana.
This region of Ghana is even poorer than the South, partly due to the unsuitable climate
for the growing of fruit and vegetables. From October to July there is the dry-season,
which is particularly unproductive.

In 1989, Dr David Abdulai founded the first Shekhinah Clinic in Tamale, in a northern
area called Gurugu.

In 2001, a second Shekhinah Clinic was established in Tamale, in a
southern area called Wamale

Shekhinah Clinic Gurugu

This clinic was opened in 1989. Dr David performed his first emergency surgery under a
mango tree, before any of the buildings had even been finished! Today, the Shekhina
Clinic is critically important; approximately 20 000 outpatients are treated every year, and
around 1000 undergo operation. Approximately 2500 are treated in the wards.


	The first building to be built. It contains the operating theatre and a ten-bedded room for the postoperative night.


	Main theatre. Several hernia patients are operated on daily, using local anaesthesia. There is no machine for anaesthesia and no anaesthetist. All surgical equipment is sterilized as in Europe.


	OPD

At the OPD (Out Patient Department), there are 50 patients treated daily. Some patients have to wait for two weeks before getting an appointment, and can travel 60km by foot. A well-trained senior nurse (Mr. Majid) does consultations here, but has the option of sending the more difficult cases to Dr David. The consultations rely on the knowledge, experience and communication skills of the nurse/doctor - with only blood pressure and pulse rate as diagnostic parameters.




		Dr David, as his patients lovingly call him, at work in his consultation room. The patient had presented with heart problems, but coincidentally had a broken arm – previously ‘treated’ by a local medicine man.



			A German doctor consults in the OPD on his visit to Shekhinah.



	In 2002, Dr Abdulai was donated an ultrasound machine for the clinic. The picture shows a German radiographer passing on her knowledge.

Shekhinah Clinic Wamale In 2001, Dr David founded the Wamale clinic, at the other side of Tamale. This clinic is organized in a similar way to the Gurugu clinic. In a typical week, Dr David will spend two days doing surgery in one clinic, and three days doing surgery in the other.