A former Director General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Professor Agyemang Badu Akosa is asking the Ministry of Health to sanction government medical officers who also run their own private clinics.<\/p>\n
[contextly_sidebar id=”ydnPLFqd1lLvyV7hg8G8PtpSbxoZrxNO”]This practice, according to him, is short-changing the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody is short-changing Korle Bu Teaching Hospital \u2013 not only Korle Bu Teaching Hospital but all hospitals in the country. It cannot be good,\u201d he complained.<\/p>\n
In Ghana, many doctors who work full time in government hospitals also operate their private clinics.<\/p>\n
In some cases, there have been reports that some medical officers direct patients to the private clinics for better health care.<\/p>\n
According to Professor Badu Akosa, the health workers in this case are competing with the employer for clients; situation he said was negatively affecting health care delivery in the country.<\/p>\n
Speaking to Citi News<\/strong> on the sidelines of a book launch by former Chief Executive Officer of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Professor Frimpong Boateng on Wednesday, Prof. Akosa this practice is unethical.<\/p>\n \u201cI have never known it anywhere. I worked in the UK, I was a Consultant in the UK and it is not done!\u201d he exclaimed.<\/p>\n He questioned why the leadership of this country was allowing the practice to prevail in Ghana.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is being done in this country and it is not only doctors; it\u2019s the pharmacists, it\u2019s the nurses, it\u2019s the midwives, it\u2019s the laboratory technicians, scientists and everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n He therefore wants the Ministry of Health to deal with these health workers.<\/p>\n The former Director General of the GHS said suggested that the only way the problem will be solved is when the government ceases to appoint \u201csomebody full time who competes with the employer for revenue.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n By: Efua Idan Osam\/Raymond Acquah\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana
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