Climax of the 5th Anniversary Celebrations and Awards

Over the past five years, the University of Ghana Medical Centre LTD (UGMC) has indeed strived to position itself as a centre for excellent patient care, training and research.  Within this period, we have witnessed remarkable achievements that continue to solidify our position as a leader in the provision of services in these three focal areas.

 

I crave your indulgence to allow me to take a brief trip down history so we can all appreciate what has transpired at the Centre over the past 5 years.

 

2018

In the early part of 2018, the Chief of Staff constituted the Asamoa-Baah Committee and later the Interim Management Committee to play various roles that would culminate in an effective and enduring model for the management and administration of UGMC.  Shortly afterwards, on July 18, 2018, my humble self, then the General Manager of the Trust Hospitals (and who was also on both committees) was appointed by the President of Ghana, H. E. Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo, as the Interim CEO of UGMC. Between July and August 2018, the Interim Management Committee working through the Interim Chief Executive Officer and Interim Administrator, constituted the initial management team as recommended by the Asamoa-Baah Committee.

 

Together with the Interim Management Committee, we saw to the Commencement of services in three OPD clinics of the Centre, namely, the Paediatric, Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Family Medicine units as well as the OPD Pharmacy, Laboratory and Ambulance services.  Administrative, Human Resources, Finance, Customer Relations, Accounting, Maintenance were set up and our I.T. support systems and service protocols were drafted to enable the Centre offer more services projected to be provided by November 2019.

 

We further ensured that necessary approvals were granted by the Controller and Accountant General’s Department to enable us operate a paperless system for the management of medical records and cases, billing and stock for drug and non-drug consumables. 
 
 

We also managed successful negotiations between the Government of Ghana and the University of Ghana on a mutually acceptable management structure.

 

The deliverables for Phase I of the project were also audited by the Project Implementation Unit of the Government of Ghana and the Interim Management Committee of the Centre in that same year.

 

We held successful engagements with various stakeholders including the University of Ghana to ensure that their inputs were factored in the management of the Centre before full operationalization commenced and to cap it for the year 2018.  In that year, we also operationalized our cutting-edge Medical Simulation and Training Centre which is one of the biggest training centres in Africa.  This Simulation and Training Centre is committed to showcasing state-of-the-art medical simulation technology to the next generation of health care practitioners and post-graduate students as well as in the marketing of specific and customized simulation programmes to corporate organizations and entities in Ghana and beyond.

 

2019

In June 2019, the signing of Commercial Agreement to activate Phase II of the Project triggered among other activities, the signing of post warranty service level agreements with medical equipment vendors to establish Planned Maintenance Schedules for delicate medical equipment which have been installed in order to ensure uninterrupted service delivery as well as the recruitment and training of additional technical staff to support the health delivery section of the Centre. The agreement also allowed for the incremental scaling of health care delivery services from 1st November 2019.

 

In September of the year 2019, minority members of the Parliamentary Committee on Health (Parliament of the republic of Ghana) embarked on an inquisitorial visit to the Centre with a number of media personalities to apprise themselves of current activities as well as to find out about the challenges facing the Centre.

 

2020 

The year 2020, definitely an annus horibilis, was the year that the pandemic broke out and turned the world upside down. In April of that year, a few weeks after the outbreak of the pandemic in Ghana, the Centre found itself being designated as one of the National Covid Treatment Centre and it acquitted itself favourably whilst ensuring that the timelines for the completion of Phase II were also not significantly affected by the peculiar challenges that the pandemic had brought in its wake. Indeed, our response to the global pandemic showcased our commitment to patient well-being and safety. Our dedicated healthcare professionals worked tirelessly to manage the crisis, implementing stringent protocols to protect both patients and staff. Their unwavering dedication and expertise truly demonstrated the resilience of our institution. 

I humbly ask that we give my gallant staff who worked so hard during that period a standing ovation at this point. 

 

By the time the Pandemic had abated, the Centre had successfully managed more than 700 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 including patients who required intensive care service as well as over Four Thousand subscribers of the COVID-Connect online service. This innovative service was successfully rolled out in partnership with Pharm Access, an international NGO with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa that works to improve health care markets.

 

The year saw the activation of our UGMC Medical and Scientific Research Centre (MSRC) which aims to facilitate cutting-edge translational research that will discover new treatments, methods and procedures to improve the health status of Ghanaians, Africa and the world. Our research centre has special interest in Cardiovascular genetics, Maternal foetal medicine, Regenerative medicine, Transplant medicine, Infectious diseases, Big data science, Non communicable Diseases and Clinical trials.

 

The year 2020 also saw to the inauguration of a number of important boards and committees notably the inauguration of substantive directors for the UGMC board as well as the 21-Member Institutional Review Board of the Centre’s Medical and Scientific Research Centre.

 

The Centre also took the opportunity to utilize the 2020 edition of the World Breast Cancer Month in October to announce its partial operations to the public and offered free mammogram screenings to 1,150 clients.  In that same year, the Centre’s Medical Training & Simulation Centre (MTSC) also commenced its virtual training programmes and lectures to the public.  Truly, the Pandemic had brought in its wake, innovations in the way medical training could be approached. 

 

2021

Notable achievements for the year 2021 included the receipt of a grant by the Bank of Ghana to establish a molecular lab to be run by the UGMC Medical and Scientific Research Centre.   The Centre continued to scale up its services during the year by increasing its human resource personnel and activating more specialists’ clinics at the OPD section. 

 

2022 

Intensification of collaborations 

The year 2022 saw the Centre opening its arms to collaborations and this commenced with a partnership with UK-based South Tees NHF Foundation Trust to perform 5 high risk open-heart surgeries in March 2022. These ground-breaking surgeries offered a new lease of life to patients who once faced daunting challenges.

 

That year also saw the Parliamentary Committee on Health embarking on a working visit to the Centre in the month of July 2022.  In September of that year, another collaboration with UK-based Arrythmia Alliance Heart of Ghana Foundation also saw to the performance of 16 complex open-heart surgeries

 

In July, in partnership with Brain Project Foundation, a US based NGO and Complex brain and spinal surgeries were also executed with precision and success, giving renewed hope to patients grappling with neurological conditions.

 

2023

The Centre continues to embark on strategic partnerships with like-minded organizations and so January 2023 saw it partnering with an international charity known as Global Brain Initiative to perform 8 complex surgeries that included the historic clipping of an aneurysm – the first of such surgeries in Ghana for the past 30 years.

 

In April 2023, the Centre once again collaborated with PharmAccess to launch the innovative NCD Care initiative which is a remote digital healthcare service, a device that allows individuals who are living with diabetes and hypertension to use self-management tools to enter daily measurements from the comfort of their homes, offices or any location in order to be monitored and managed by medical officers at the Centre in real time. 

 

In May this year, we once again collaborated with an international foundation known as Global Hearts Foundation to perform paediatric catheterizations for three children and just last month, the Centre collaborated with the Qatar Charity to perform paediatric catheterizations for 30 Children. Our breakthroughs in paediatric catheterizations have opened doors to minimally invasive treatments for our youngest patients, transforming their futures.

 

Our Medical Training and Simulation Centre has intensified the number of trainings it offers and has begun offering the highly sought-after laparoscopic training programmes among advanced medical training programmes.

 

Our Medical and Scientific Research Centre, in addition to embarking on a number of research studies and publications, is also about to establish the first-ever in-patient Clinical Trials Unit (CTU) in collaboration with MDS- Lancet-Cerba and other partners and sponsors. This Clinical Trials Unit will help ensure that medications brought to Ghanaians and West Africa are more suitable for our genetic make-up and also have fewer side effects.  

  

Each of our success stories is a testament to the synergy between cutting-edge technology, the expertise of our clinical and non-clinical staff, and the determination to push the boundaries of medical science.

 

Of course, none of this would have been possible without our investments in human resources and infrastructure. Our healthcare professionals, armed with knowledge and skill, are the driving force behind our accomplishments and they are strongly supported by the professionals providing auxiliary services.   The Centre can now boast of about 1,500 staff and about 40 specialist and sub-specialist clinics. We have also dedicated resources from our limited budget to training and development, nurturing a culture of continuous learning and growth.

 

Our infrastructure has undergone significant expansion and modernization, thanks to the unwavering support from both the Ministry of Health and the University of Ghana. Their support and collaboration have empowered us to get this far.

 

Awards

Earlier this year we also received national and presidential honours and awards from the president of the Republic, His Excellency, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for the marvelous services it rendered during the COVID-19 pandemic. This award is in addition to an earlier one received in 2022 from the West African Health Awards Foundation for being the most outstanding medical facility in Ghana in 2022.

 

We are eternally grateful for the immense support enjoyed so far from the Presidency, Ministry of Health, Finance Ministry, University of Ghana, our board members, sponsors, partners and all other stakeholders. 

 

Challenges

You will however agree with me that a Centre of this magnitude cannot be without challenges so we have had and still have our fair share of challenges. 

One of our major challenges is the need to be resourced with more quaternary level equipment to be able to deliver more specialized services in areas such as oncology & radiation therapy and minimally invasive surgeries.

UGMC requires more accommodation for our specialists since the original plan made provision for 11 blocks of 8 Three-bedroom bungalows each but currently, we have only 1 of such blocks, although there is enough space left for the 10 remaining ones.

We are also in need of an Infectious Disease Centre since the pandemic made it obvious that it was not the best to needlessly expose other vulnerable patients to infectious diseases by holding all categories of patients in the same wards. We are therefore respectfully appealing to the Presidency for the provision of a 50-bed infectious Centre and 5 blocks of 8 Three-bedroom bungalows for our consultants, specialists and other critical health staff. As I stated already, there is a lot of space for the construction of same.

We would very much grateful if we would receive the much-needed support to construct a Helipad near the security gate at the main entrance to assist us in the evacuation of trauma cases to boost our efforts at medical tourism.

Lastly but equally important is an appeal to all of us seated here to assist us to raise the 5 million dollars needed to establish the first-ever in-patient Clinical Trials Unit at the Centre. We remain eternally grateful to all the organizations and individuals who have so far lent their support to the project. Thank you for believing in our vision.

Distinguished Chair, ladies and gentlemen, you will agree with me that each success story is a testament to the budding synergy between cutting-edge technology, training, research as well as the expertise of our clinical and non-clinical staff, and the determination to push the boundaries of medical science.

 

In conclusion, the journey from 2018 to 2023 has been one of transformation, growth, and achievement. As we move forward, we remain committed to our mission of excellence in healthcare, research and education.

 

As we celebrate 5 years of operationalization, we congratulate all who worked so hard and sacrificed so much for the vision to come into fruition. Our strategic plan, which is being finalized for publication, will also be outdoored very soon and will offer a blueprint for the direction that the Centre will take over the next 5 years.

 

Together, we shall continue to work hard to shape the future of health care in Ghana and beyond.

 

Thank you and Ayekoo to all of us.