Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has expressed apprehension regarding the proliferation of new medical schools by tertiary institutions within the country.
Dr. Frank Serebour, the president of the GMA, voiced concerns to Citi News, cautioning that this trend could potentially dilute the standards and excellence of medical education and practice.
Instead, he urged the government to concentrate on enhancing existing facilities to accommodate more students.
Dr. Serebour stressed the importance of upholding quality training and adhering to established standards in the healthcare sector. He voiced discontent with the establishment of additional medical schools and proposed the adoption of the external teaching site concept as a means to maintain standards, ensure quality, and achieve adequate capacity.
“I am not happy and I think it is wrong for us to be creating new medical schools all over the place and I believe that the external teachers’ size is the way to go. And that for me would ensure that standards are maintained, quality is ensured and even good numbers, and it is also easy and cheap and it’s better than you converting every regional hospital into a teaching hospital or medical school.”
Amidst Ghana’s healthcare challenges, particularly in the delivery of medical services, the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has highlighted concerns, notably regarding the role of health facilities as teaching hospitals.
In response to these challenges, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) has taken a proactive step by signing a memorandum of understanding with the Bekwai Municipal Hospital. This agreement establishes the hospital as a clinical training centre for medical students enrolled at KNUST.
The primary objective of this collaboration is to alleviate the strain on the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, which currently shoulders the bulk of medical training responsibilities for KNUST students.
Joseph Osei-Owusu, Member of Parliament for Bekwai and First Deputy Speaker of Ghana’s Parliament, expressed enthusiasm for this partnership.
He emphasised the importance of medical student training and conveyed a commitment to further expansion, contingent upon the availability of funding.
“Training of a medical student is a must and a necessity. These two institutions, plus the others, are still not sufficient. And being willing to expand, of course, comes with money. And so the day you announced that Bekwai Hospital can be used as training, I’ve known no peace.”
Prof. Rita Akosua Dickson, Vice Chancellor for KNUST, also emphasised the importance of maintaining standards in medical education, as health professionals play a crucial role in taking care of the population.
“Regardless of the fact that we are challenged by the huge numbers, one thing that we don’t want to get wrong is that standards must always be maintained because these health professionals are the people that will look after us when we are not, in fact, when we are unconscious. When you can’t speak, they’ll decide what to do with you and me so we better ensure that the standards are kept.”
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