President John Dramani Mahama has announced plans to establish the Ghana Medical Equipment Services Limited (GMESL) to oversee the procurement, maintenance and replacement of medical equipment in public health facilities across the country.
He explained that the company, a subsidiary of the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, was intended to provide a sustainable system for retooling health facilities nationwide.
President Mahama made the announcement in Accra yesterday when he commissioned a Cardiac Catheterisation Laboratory at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.
The facility, constructed by the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, forms part of the government’s broader strategy to strengthen specialised healthcare delivery across the country.
Two additional centres are expected to be established at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital and the Tamale Teaching Hospital.
President Mahama observed that Ghana had, over the years, invested significantly in healthcare infrastructure and equipment, only for many of those investments to deteriorate due to poor maintenance and the absence of clear replacement plans.
He recalled that while serving as Vice President, about US$250 million was invested in retooling major regional and teaching hospitals with CT scanners, MRI machines, X-ray equipment and other essential technologies. However, he said, many of the facilities had since called for replacements as the equipment broke down due to inadequate maintenance.
He said the establishment of the GMESL was therefore a necessary step to address those challenges and prevent a recurrence.
President Mahama indicated that the company would be staffed with professional biomedical engineers with the technical expertise to manage and maintain medical equipment effectively.
He emphasised that improving healthcare delivery required not only financing and equipment but also skilled personnel capable of operating the facilities and delivering quality care.
In that regard, he said efforts to build the required workforce had begun with the establishment of a nursing training centre at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, where critical care nurses are being trained in specialised areas such as nephrology, cardiovascular care and oncology.
He added that a similar centre would be set up at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, and that Cabinet had approved the recruitment and training of 500 nurses in specialised fields.
President Mahama said the initiatives would ensure that Ghana had the facilities, skilled professionals and financing mechanisms needed to deliver quality diagnosis and treatment.
He noted that although the country had made progress in tackling infectious diseases, non-communicable diseases including cardiovascular diseases, stroke, cancer, kidney failure, diabetes and hypertension — were on the rise, placing a growing financial burden on families.
That situation, he said, had informed the introduction of the Free Primary Healthcare Programme and the Ghana Medical Trust Fund to promote early diagnosis at the community level and support specialised treatment.
“The true wealth of any nation lies in the health and wellbeing of its people. Healthy citizens are more productive, children learn better, families thrive, businesses grow and nations prosper. Every investment we make in healthcare is therefore an investment in Ghana’s human capital and the future of our country,” President Mahama stated.
BY JULIUS
Follow our WhatsApp Channel now! https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbAjG7g3gvWajUAEX12Q
