Patients at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital have been left stranded after doctors suspended all Out-Patient Department (OPD) services, significantly disrupting routine healthcare delivery at the country’s premier referral facility.
The disruption follows an ongoing strike by medical doctors, which took full effect on Monday morning, forcing the hospital to turn away patients seeking specialist consultations. Only emergency and critical cases are currently being attended to.
Patients arriving at the facility were met with notices announcing the withdrawal of OPD services, leaving many to either seek care elsewhere or join long queues at the already overstretched emergency unit.
According to the doctors’ association, the industrial action stems from unresolved disagreements over laboratory procedures that are affecting clinical decision-making and patient safety.
“The decision comes after prolonged tensions that are compromising patient safety and clinical decision-making,” the association stated.
Central to the dispute is a demand that all specialised laboratory results be reviewed and validated by qualified laboratory physicians before being released. The doctors are also calling for unrestricted access to laboratory systems and equipment for both clinical work and medical training.
The suspension has triggered a surge in cases at the emergency department, as patients who would normally be treated at OPD are redirected, placing additional strain on limited resources.
Sources within the hospital indicate that tensions between medical doctors and laboratory professionals have been building for weeks, with attempts at resolution yet to yield results.
As Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital serves patients from across Ghana, the ongoing disruption is expected to have far-reaching implications for healthcare access nationwide.
As of now, neither hospital management nor the Ministry of Health Ghana has issued an official response while patients continue to bear the brunt of the strike action.
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