The crisis at the Accident and Emergency Centre of Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital goes beyond a lack of beds, the Korle-Bu Doctors’ Association (KODA) has stated, pointing to a weak national referral system that is overwhelming the facility.
In a statement issued on March 23, 2026, KODA said the persistent overcrowding at the emergency unit is largely due to the inability of lower-level hospitals to manage cases, forcing them to refer patients to Korle-Bu as the default option.
“The provision of 1000 extra beds would not immediately translate into enough health personnel to take care of these patients,” the association said. “Any number of beds provided in Korle-Bu would be filled up in no time, because the referring hospitals don’t have the capacity to take care of the conditions they are referring to the higher centres.”
According to the doctors, the situation reflects deeper systemic challenges within Ghana’s healthcare delivery structure, where referral pathways are not functioning effectively as a coordinated network.
The doctors’ association is therefore calling on hospital management to engage the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service to strengthen the referral system so that patients can be managed appropriately at different levels of care, rather than overwhelming a single facility.
The warning comes amid renewed public attention on conditions at Korle-Bu’s emergency centre, following recent concerns about overcrowding and patients being treated in non-ideal spaces.
Beyond the systemic issues, the association also raised concerns about the legal exposure facing doctors working under such conditions.
It has directed its members to document the clinical environment in detail when attending to patients, especially in cases where care is provided in suboptimal settings such as on the floor due to lack of space.
Doctors have also been advised to formally report all instances of overcrowding and resource shortages to their superiors, including Heads of Unit and the Director of Medical Affairs.
KODA urged its members not to compromise professional and ethical standards despite the pressure.
“The law courts would not accept such a sacrifice,” the association warned, stressing that clinicians could still be held liable for adverse outcomes even under difficult working conditions.
KODA noted that proposals to address the challenges in Ghana’s healthcare system have already been put forward by the Ghana Medical Association and other stakeholders.
However, it said what is needed now is the political will to implement these recommendations to prevent avoidable deaths and improve working conditions for healthcare professionals.
The association added that resolving the crisis at Korle-Bu will require a system-wide approach that strengthens capacity across all levels of care, rather than focusing solely on expanding infrastructure at one facility.
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