The Hon. Deputy Health Minister, Bernard Okoe Boye has outlined some important role fly zipline has played in saving lives at the various health centres across the country.

He said, the Ministry of Health and Fly Zipline Ghana Ltd (Zipline) signed a Service Agreement for the emergency delivery of blood and health products to selected public health facilities, which was approved by Parliament on Tuesday, 11th December, 2018 and so far, Zipline has completed and is operating from all four (4) distribution centres at Omenako in the Eastern Region, Mpanya in the Ashanti Region, Vobsi in the North Eastern Region and Sefwi Wiawso in the Western North Region.

Mr.Okoe Boye added that, as at end of June 2020, Zipline had delivered a total of 79,800 products to 925 health facilities within its service range; out of which 47,100 were life-saving medical products; 31,400 were vaccines; and 1,264 were blood products.

He went on to explain that, since May 2020, Zipline has delivered 2,573 COVID19 samples to the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research . (NMIMR) and Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research (KCCR) and also, health professionals in health facilities within the service range now have the peace of mind in the management of patients in the theatre and labour wards particularly, and the hospital in general with the availability of blood and emergency medicines within a few minutes of request.

The Deputy Minister explain that, patients who otherwise would have been referred to other hospitals for dog and snake bites, blood transfusion and other life-threatening cases as a result of the non-availability of emergency medicines, are now being treated within these hospitals without the need for referrals.