The Greater Accra Regional branch of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) has raised strong objections to the credibility of the committee report on the Ridge Hospital assault case.
Its Regional Chairman, Jefferson Asare, argued that the committee strayed from its mandate and overlooked critical witnesses, leaving fundamental questions unanswered.
The investigative committee, chaired by Dr. Lawrence Ofori-Boadu, was set up by Health Minister Hon. Kwabena Mintah Akandoh to probe the alleged assault of Rejoice Tsotso Bortei, a rotation nurse at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital.
While the committee acknowledged that the nurse received pain relief and psychological care following the incident, its findings dismissed claims of a dislocation or fracture, concluding there was no medical evidence to support such injuries.
Mr. Asare insisted that the committee failed to answer the most important question in the case.
“The mandate of the committee was to investigate whether there was an assault. Was there an assault or not? That was the question they needed to answer. Whether there was no dislocation, whether there was no fracture – was there an assault? This is the terms of reference of the committee”
Jefferson Asare, Greater Accra Regional Chairman of GRNMA
He expressed disappointment that the probe concentrated on medical debates instead of addressing the issue of whether an assault occurred. He further criticised the committee’s methodology, stressing that the first doctor to examine the victim was ignored during the inquiry.
“It was a senior medical officer who saw the lady on the Monday morning. And you go to interview the HOD of that department. What account will the HOD give you? You need to first interview the person who had the first sight of the lady in question”
Jefferson Asare, Greater Accra Regional Chairman of GRNMA
Further Concerns
The release of the committee’s report has generated unease among health workers, with the GRNMA questioning both its findings and its implications for healthcare professionals.
“We are very surprised… I will want to understand when we say assault what we mean,” Mr Asare said in reaction to the report. He warned that the handling of the case going forward could undermine trust in the Ministry of Health’s processes and discourage confidence among frontline workers who already face significant challenges.
“It is a healthcare system we are building. Immediately you try to cast insinuation on healthcare providers, it is very dangerous”
Jefferson Asare, Greater Accra Regional Chairman of GRNMA
Mr Asare drew further attention to inconsistencies in the probe, particularly regarding the testimony of Ridge Hospital leadership. He explained that it was not the nurse or her colleagues who first raised the issue of dislocation but rather the hospital’s own management.
“It wasn’t the nurse that diagnosed the dislocation,” he explained and again decried the omission of the doctor who physically examined the nurse, describing it as a major flaw in the investigation.
“I know that for a fact because the names that were provided for people that were interviewed are here, and the medical report that was written and stamped – I have it. The doctor’s name is here. That doctor was not interviewed”
Jefferson Asare, Greater Accra Regional Chairman of GRNMA
The association’s reaction underscores growing concern that the credibility of official investigative processes could be eroded if key witnesses and evidence are overlooked. The Ridge Hospital case, which began with allegations of assault on August 17, has now raised broader questions about accountability within the health sector.
By questioning the thoroughness and scope of the investigative process, the GRNMA has called attention to the importance of maintaining transparency in health-related disciplinary and legal matters.
Its leadership maintains that unless such probes focus squarely on their mandate, they risk further alienating healthcare professionals and undermining public trust in Ghana’s health system.
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