Dr. Bernard Okoe Boye, the President’s representative at the Ministry of Health has acknowledged that 2024 has been a challenging year for the health sector, marked by accumulated unpaid bills, shortages of essential medicines and inadequate distribution of critical health professionals, particularly in remote areas.
Speaking at the 2024 Annual Health Summit, which took place on May 14, 2024, at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra, he highlighted the crucial theme: “Quality Healthcare Delivery: A Catalyst for Achieving Universal Health Coverage.”
He underscored the negative impact of intermittent power supply on healthcare delivery, with many hospitals struggling to pay their electricity bills.
He called for a rethinking of health infrastructure towards eco-friendly facilities and investment in solar technology.
“Dr. Chairman, the year under review has been challenging for the health sector.
“Some of the burgeoning issues confronting the sector include accumulated unpaid bills (uncompleted projects, irregular supply of commodities), shortages of health commodities such as medicines and consumables, capping of NHIF and IGF of some agencies, and inadequate numbers and distribution of critical health professionals, with difficulty in attracting and retaining critical staff, especially in deprived or remote areas,” Dr. Okoe-Boye explained.
“Additionally, the recent intermittent power supply has negatively impacted healthcare service delivery in Ghana. Public hospitals in Ghana are struggling to pay their electricity bills.”
Despite these challenges, Dr. Okoe-Boye outlined significant improvements in healthcare access. According to him, the Ministry of Health, through the Ghana Health Service, has adopted the Network of Practice (NoP) strategy to strengthen primary healthcare systems, improve access, reduce health disparities, and promote early intervention and disease prevention.
He explained that the Ministry has also received additional funding of USD 14.5 million from the FCDO, GAVI, and the Canadian government to improve maternal health, vaccines, adolescent health, and family planning services.
Highlighting infrastructure developments, Dr. Okoe-Boye mentioned the completion of several health facilities in Elubo, Bogoso, Mpohor, Nsuaem, and Wassa Dunkwa, as well as the construction of a regional hospital in Sewua and a district hospital in Konongo.
“In our quest to strengthen primary healthcare to achieve UHC, the Ministry of Health, through the Ghana Health Service, has adopted the Network of Practice strategy, which seeks to further strengthen our primary healthcare systems by improving access to care, reducing health disparities, and promoting early intervention and disease prevention,” he added.
He emphasized the need for continuous efforts to ensure no one is left behind in healthcare access.
Dr. Nana Yaw Afriyie, Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health, called for a robust partnership between the public and private sectors to enhance the health system. He stated that the health sector cannot operate in isolation; therefore, collaborative efforts are essential for a resilient health system.
Meanwhile, Dr. Mohammed Adam, Finance Minister, stated that the government has secured funds to complete several health projects, such as the La Polyclinic and upgrades at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, as evidence of the commitment under President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s administration.
“The Ministry of Finance will continue to support the healthcare sector. Our health expenditure per capita is estimated at $75, which compares favorably with the $39 average in low-income countries,” Dr. Adam stated.
He assured that the nation’s economic recovery is strong, projecting a growth rate of 1.5% despite ongoing challenges.
“I assure you that we will continue to support the healthcare sector because a healthy society is a productive society, and a productive society is a growing economy. Therefore, there is a positive correlation between healthcare and economic growth and development,” he asserted.
The Annual Health Summit is one of the monitoring and accountability mechanisms of the Ministry for the performance of the sector each year. The key feature of the Health Summit is to share findings of the holistic assessment report based on the previous year’s Programme of Work for discussion in a plenary session.
However, the 2024 summit will present results from the mid-term review of the Health Sector Medium-Term Development Plan (HSMTDP) and afford stakeholders the opportunity to discuss the report and propose solutions for addressing challenges in the sector.
The Mid-Term Review (MTR) of the HSMTDP is expected to provide insights into the performance and effectiveness of Ghana’s health system based on the stated policy objectives and interventions articulated in the HSMTDP and the Universal Healthcare Coverage Roadmap (2020-2030).