Gbarnga, Bong County – The Administrator of C.B. Dunbar Hospital, Enoch Morris, says the hospital is experiencing an unprecedented surge in patients following the ongoing strike action by health workers at Phebe Hospital, forcing the facility to convert its conference hall into a temporary patient ward.
Speaking in an interview, Morris said the hospital has remained operational but has become overwhelmed by the influx of patients seeking medical care after services at Phebe Hospital were disrupted.
According to him, the hospital, which was originally built as a maternity facility before being upgraded to a comprehensive hospital in 2021, was never structurally expanded to match its increased responsibilities.
“We have been very overwhelmed with patient flow between yesterday and today,” Morris said, noting that the hospital’s existing infrastructure is struggling to accommodate the growing number of referrals.
The administrator disclosed that C.B. Dunbar Hospital has 102 functional beds, which are often fully occupied even during normal periods. He explained that the current situation has significantly worsened the already limited bed capacity.
To cope with the emergency, Morris said hospital management, in collaboration with the Bong County Health Team, is implementing temporary measures to increase patient space. These include converting the hospital’s conference hall into a general ward and reorganizing bed allocation by moving stable patients to alternative areas to free beds for critically ill cases.
He also emphasized the urgent need for the construction of the proposed new C.B. Dunbar Hospital along the Lofa Road, describing the project as essential to strengthening healthcare delivery in Bong County.
Morris noted that even under normal circumstances, both Phebe Hospital and C.B. Dunbar Hospital are insufficient to meet the healthcare demands of the county’s growing population. He said the ongoing disruption at Phebe has further exposed the need for expanded healthcare infrastructure.
While expressing confidence that normal operations at Phebe Hospital would eventually resume, Morris urged the government to expedite construction of the new referral hospital, saying it would significantly improve healthcare access and ease pressure on existing facilities.
The hospital administrator also revealed that construction of an annex at C.B. Dunbar Hospital is progressing and is expected to be completed later this year. He said the additional structure will help reduce congestion but stressed that a larger, modern hospital remains necessary to meet the county’s long-term healthcare needs.
