The Ghana Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists (GAMLS) has intensified calls for a comprehensive national emergency care policy to tackle head-on the country’s recurring ‘No Bed Syndrome’ and systemic failures, as well as financial barriers.
It noted that the current healthcare framework often compels professionals to prioritise administrative and financial procedures over immediate life-saving interventions.
The association, however, believes the safety and preservation of human life must remain the foremost priority of Ghana’s health sector.
In a statement, GAMLS suggested that the payment of upfront fees for emergency cases at health facilities be exempted through a well-structured national framework.
“In emergency situations where minutes determine survival, such financial requirements can delay care and place lives at unnecessary risk. Importantly, existing administrative and financial policies in some facilities constrain health professionals, including medical laboratory scientists, from providing certain emergency services until payment processes are initiated. This systemic challenge must be addressed at the national level,” the statement reads.
GAMLS therefore urges policymakers to adopt reforms that protect both patients and frontline professionals while ensuring the sustainability of health facilities.
They stressed that protecting patient lives requires a dual commitment: “holding professionals accountable” where appropriate, while urgently reforming the systemic and policy barriers that delay emergency care.
“A comprehensive national emergency care policy is no longer optional; it is an imperative for patient safety and health system resilience.”
GAMLS expressed its readiness and commitment to working collaboratively with government, regulators, healthcare institutions, and professional bodies to strengthen Ghana’s emergency care system.
Below is the full statement
