The recent incident at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, popularly known as Ridge Hospital, has brought to light deep-seated systemic failures within Ghana’s healthcare system, former Vice President of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA), Dr. Justice Yankson, has said.
Dr. Yankson, who was a guest on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, August 30, said the incident, where an individual allegedly assaulted a medical professional, was not an isolated event but a symptom of a larger problem.
He noted that while the committee set up to investigate the matter found no delay in attending to the patient, it did highlight a number of systemic failures that led to a delay in diagnosis and treatment.
“The committee has established clearly that there was no delay [in attending to the patient],” Dr. Yankson said, adding that the assault was “unfounded.”
He explained that the real issue lay with the challenges within the facility, which were beyond the control of the frontline healthcare workers.
Dr. Yankson pointed to the committee’s findings, which revealed a lack of functional equipment and other broken-down diagnostic tools at the hospital.
He argued that if the flagship facility of the Ghana Health Service is grappling with such basic challenges, one can only imagine the state of healthcare in district and sub-district facilities.
The former GMA official lamented the country’s poor “culture of maintenance”, stating that equipment purchased with public funds is often left to deteriorate.
He expressed concern that this lack of adequate facilities often results in patients and their relatives redirecting their frustration onto healthcare workers, who are trying their best to provide care under difficult circumstances.
Dr. Yankson’s comments underscore the urgent need for a comprehensive review of Ghana’s healthcare infrastructure and a renewed commitment to addressing the systemic challenges that continue to compromise patient care and endanger the lives of healthcare professionals.
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