GHS launches National Health Promotion Strategy 2022 –2026 IN Accra
The Health Promotion Division of the Ghana Health Service yesterday launched the National Health Promotion Strategy 2022 -2026, aim to improve the quality of health promotion services in the country.
The strategy which is a review of the previous one which ended in 2019 describes the opportunities and strategies to further improve Health Promotion in Ghana, through an all-inclusive approach that leverages efforts and resources to sustain impact.
The Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, who launched that programme at the opening of the second Ghana Health Service, Senior Managers’ Meeting, in Accra, said the ability and leadership of the GHS to coordinate the development of the meeting and the launch of the National Health Promotion Strategy 2022-2026 was a major step towards ensuring a roadmap to realise the integration of demand generation, behaviour change and health service delivery.
“It is these essential elements that, when effectively planned and implemented will see measurable improvements in key health indicators and a healthier society,” he added.
The Minister reminded management of the GHS to recommit themselves towards effective health service delivery saying, “The lives and health of our fellow citizens are in your hands”.
The Director of GHS, Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye said, the strategy would improve the quality of health promotion services at all levels, improve the health of communities in Ghana and increase collaboration and partnerships for health service provision.
He reiterated that, while health workers discharge their duties to improve health care service delivery, it was important to link health care planning and systems strengthening to health promotion, behavior change and risk communication efforts.
He entreated all managers to ensure that, their plans reflect the policy changes to help improve health care delivery in the country.
For his part, the Director of the Health Promotion Division, Dr Aboagye DaCosta, stated that the strategy would seek to build healthy public policy, create supportive environments, strengthen community action, develop personal skills and reorient health services.
He explained that it would also inform Ghanaians on how to stay healthy and to support the initiatives in the community that influence health and wellbeing.
“This will increase the ability of Ghanaians to increase control over and improve their health, involve the population in the context of their everyday lives and drive activities that were geared toward promoting health and preventing ill-health rather than focusing on people at risk for specific diseases,”Dr DaCosta said.
BY VIVIAN ARTHUR
