HEAD of National Health Insurance Authority, Dr. Lydia Dsane-Selby has expressed her concerns about compromised health care in public hospitals.
The Medical officer said this at Dr. E. C. Tamakloe Medical Symposium held in Accra last Friday on the theme: “Improving the Quality of Healthcare in Ghana”.
According to her, description by unqualified staff with improper diagnosis is the order of the day in most public hospitals which she said, had cost the lives of many people.
“There is a need to apply, monitor and supervise the law, regulations and standard treatment guidelines in the National Health Insurance Scheme to ensure that patients receive quality health care.
Medical practitioners and facilities must be accredited and use tools at their disposal to ensure quality service”. she emphasised.
She attribute the problem to the general assumption that anyone with a white coat and a stethoscope is a doctor.
“Anyone can just prescribe drugs without the right medical background.”
Speaking on the topic “Quality and Patient safety-the Ghanaian context”, Dr. Victoria Lokko, Medical Director at Nyaho Medical Centre also bemoaned the high cost in running private medical facilities and high import duty on importation of medical equipment.
“There is a need for a partnership between the private and public sectors to help relieve the burden on private sectors by reducing taxes on medical equipment as well as improving the condition of service in public hospitals,” she explained.
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