The Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has disclosed that a vast majority of public health facilities in Ghana lack the essential equipment needed to deliver basic healthcare services.
Presenting findings at the Government Accountability Series on Monday, April 13, the Minister revealed that only a small fraction of facilities meet the minimum equipment requirements, raising concerns about the country’s readiness to implement its free primary healthcare policy.
According to him, the situation is particularly dire within the public health sector, where just 2% of facilities are fully equipped to provide essential services. The findings stem from a nationwide assessment that covered approximately 60% of health facilities across the country.
“Many primary healthcare level facilities do not yet have all the equipment required to deliver the full range of essential services.
“Indeed, data from a nationwide survey covering about 60% of our health facilities showed that only 5% had the full complement of basic equipment that was checked in the assessment. And the situation is even worse for our public health facilities. Only 2% had all the basic equipment that was checked in the assessment,” he said.
The Minister noted that these equipment gaps pose a major challenge to strengthening primary healthcare delivery, especially as the government prepares to roll out its flagship free healthcare policy in phases.
He stressed that addressing these deficiencies will be critical to ensuring equitable access to quality healthcare services, particularly at the primary level where most Ghanaians seek care.
