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Confusion and Frustration at Tamale Teaching Hospital as Doctors’ Strike Leaves Patients Stranded
Frustration and confusion gripped the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) in the early hours of Thursday, April 24, 2025, as patients who had arrived for much-needed medical care were met with deserted consulting rooms and unanswered questions.
The disruption follows a decision by the Doctors’ Association of Tamale Teaching Hospital (DATTH) to indefinitely suspend all emergency and outpatient services.
The action, taken on April 23, was in response to what the association described as “unwarranted attacks” by Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh and Tamale North MP Alhassan Suhuyini during an official visit to the hospital’s Accident and Emergency Unit.
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The abrupt suspension has effectively brought vital departments — including the General Outpatient Department (OPD), Antenatal Clinic, Specialist Clinic, and Paediatrics OPD — to a standstill. Although inpatient care continues for now, the absence of medical staff in outpatient areas has left hundreds of patients without treatment or direction.
During a visit by Citi News on Thursday, April 24, scenes of confusion played out across the hospital. Patients, some of whom had traveled long distances and queued since dawn, sat restlessly in waiting areas, unaware of the strike or when services might resume. With no doctors or medical personnel in sight, many expressed anger and disappointment.
“I arrived at 5 a.m. hoping to see a specialist for my child, only to be told there’s no doctor today,” one distressed parent said. “Nobody is giving us any explanation.”
The strike was triggered by tensions arising from a heated incident between the Minister of Health and Dr. Valentine Akwulpwa, head of the hospital’s Accident and Emergency Department, during the minister’s unannounced visit on April 22.
The visit, sparked by the death of a patient reportedly due to a lack of functional equipment, quickly escalated and has since gone viral on social media, fuelling national debate.
In response, DATTH condemned the conduct of the officials and demanded unconditional apologies, along with immediate efforts to address persistent infrastructural and logistical deficiencies at the hospital. The group maintains that its members will not return to full service until their concerns are addressed.
The strike has compounded pressure on an already strained healthcare system in the Northern Region, and there are growing calls for government intervention.
Meanwhile, the health minister has appealed for calm, stressing that he meant no disrespect to healthcare workers and urging a return to dialogue.
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