ter Hürne spendet die Fußböden für den Bau eines Krankenhauses in Ghana
A 1,000-mile journey begins with a single step!
Dr Samuel Okae began his medical studies in 2002 at the Charité in Berlin with the ambition to become a good doctor. Four years later, he returned to Ghana with a grant from the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) for a malaria project.
"In Ghana, many women and children are still dying in childbirth, and life expectancy is only 63 because medical care is inadequate. Children under five are dying of diseases, which, with access to sufficient medical care, would not necessarily be fatal – malaria being the foremost of them. It was only this direct comparison between the two countries that made me realise how inadequate the medical care is in my native country," says the father of five. Impressions from Ghana lead him to his decision to do something in his native country to improve the situation.
Dr Okae undertook to build a model hospital in a suburb of Ghana’s capital, Accra. He started to save in order to fulfil his dream. "My flat in the halls of residence was really cheap, and parties were never really my thing," he laughs.
In 2010, the time had come. He bought a plot in a suburb of Accra and started building the hospital in 2011. A lot has already been set in motion since then. As his main job, the 39-year-old works as a specialist in trauma surgery and orthopaedics at Dortmund Hospital. So Dr Okae organised most things from Dortmund, regularly shipping containers with building materials and furniture to his home country.
For example, he and his small team were permitted to dismantle windows, doors handrails, and an emergency generator in German hospitals and ship them to Ghana. So he had already received some great support. And colleagues keen to help also made practical medical donations in the form of instruments and medical technology.
A visit to ter Hürne to select the flooring for the hospital. ter Hürne is donating over 600 m² of healthy home environment flooring plus accessories for the medical areas of the hospital. Pictured (from left to right) Bernhard ter Hürne, Dr Samuel Okae, Petra and Hans-Georg Griewel from the Friends of the Hospital for Ghana Association.
But Dr Okae prefers it when he is on site himself. Almost every evening there is a site meeting by video conference, and at least once a year he flies to Ghana to get stuck in and drive the site forward himself. Over the past few years, Dr Okae has already invested around €400,000 of his own money in his project. To save this amount of money, he has spent many days and nights on duty in the emergency medical service.
The aim of the project is to have up to 100 employees (doctors, nurses and care providers) in the hospital, providing healthcare for the people in Ghana. However, as Ghana lacks not only the hospital beds and equipment, but also the skilled workers, Dr Okae will return to Ghana with his family when the hospital becomes operational. "‘I am conscious that there is still a very long way to reach our goal. But a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step," says the father of five with confidence, quoting the Chinese philosopher, Lao Tzu.
The special thing about the hospital for Ghana will be that children under five and whose parents cannot afford medical treatment will receive free medical care here.
Following a 9-year construction period – supported only by private initiative – the building near Accra, the capital of Ghana, is nearing completion. The photo shows the status in summer 2020
Manual container loading – ter Hürne floors are shipped immediately to Accra, Ghana. The transport costs alone were €12,000 per container.
"Children up to this age are particularly susceptible to infectious diseases because their immune systems have not yet matured. That is why many children in Ghana are dying of malaria – this is the most frequent cause of death in the country. I would like to prevent this in the future with the principle of solidarity medicine," says Dr Okae speaking of his mission. The hospital is approximately 3,450 m² in size and will provide space for about 130 beds.
"We heard about the 'Solidarity Hospital for Ghana' project by word of mouth, a management employee told us about it. We thought it was just a great project, that immediately caught our interest. Our enthusiasm was captured by the combination of personal initiative, courage, entrepreneurial spirit, solidarity and long-term feasibility brought together by the personal commitment of Dr Okae. They are the same values that drive us in our business. And because Dr Okae and his family will personally lead the project locally, sustainable benefits for people in need will be assured directly and over the long term," says Bernhard ter Hürne.
‘"We are delighted to have also inspired some of our supply partners to support the project as well. We immediately made our partners aware of what the project still needs – with success," adds the entrepreneur. For example, Sondro in Drolshagen contributed over 1,000 linear metres of aluminium angle profiles for the edge protection of the walls in the hospital, and SIKA/Schönox in Rosendahl donated the adhesives needed for the ter Hürne floors.
"And we will stay on the ball and try to obtain additional partners for the project," concludes Bernhard ter Hürne with a smile. Worktops for the laboratories, doors and washable wall cladding are still on the to-do list." "My father always said that we cannot save the world on our own, but doing nothing is really not good enough. Help is arriving directly and effectively here. And a lot more is still needed."
