President John Dramani Mahama has announced plans to increase emergency bed capacity at major teaching and referral hospitals to at least 10 per cent of their functional bed capacity as part of efforts to address Ghana’s persistent ‘No Bed Syndrome’.
The initiative, scheduled to begin next year, will initially cover the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Tamale Teaching Hospital and the 37 Military Hospital.
President Mahama said the additional beds would be supported with the necessary medical personnel, equipment, oxygen and essential supplies to ensure they are fully operational.
Speaking at the 68th Annual General Conference of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA), held under the theme, “The No Bed Syndrome: Reimagining a Befitting Emergency Response System for Ghana”, he stressed that the problem extended beyond the physical availability of beds to include trained personnel, functional equipment and essential medical supplies.
He also announced the commencement of operations at the Ghana Armed Forces Critical Care and Emergency Hospital, which is expected to increase the country’s capacity to manage emergency cases and strengthen collaboration between military and civilian health services.
As part of efforts to improve patient referrals, the President highlighted the piloting of an Integrated Bed Management and Referral Coordination System. The system is expected to enable hospitals and ambulance teams to identify facilities with available capacity and coordinate the safe transfer of patients.
On healthcare workforce distribution, President Mahama disclosed that 100 doctors had accepted postings to underserved communities.
He added that the government was working towards regular annual recruitment of health professionals while introducing financial and non-financial incentives to improve staff retention in deprived areas.
The President further announced plans to procure 100 new ambulances and repair another 100 grounded vehicles to strengthen emergency response across the country.
He urged the GMA to provide practical recommendations on emergency care, workforce deployment and healthcare reforms, emphasising that patients must receive timely medical attention rather than being left to navigate a fragmented referral system during emergencies.
The conference was attended by the Minister for Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, traditional leaders, chief executive officers of health agencies, a representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Administrator of the Ghana Medical Trust Fund and other key stakeholders in the health sector.
