The Minister of Health, Hon. Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has announced plans to expand emergency units at major teaching hospitals and introduce a digital bed management system to improve access to emergency care across the country.
He made the announcement during a tour of the Integrated Bed Management and Referral Coordination System (IBMRCS) command centre, where he outlined measures to address challenges involving bed availability, patient referrals and prolonged stays in emergency units.
The system is designed to provide health authorities with real-time information on available beds across health facilities, coordinate referrals and identify patients who remain in emergency units for more than 24 hours.
Hon. Akandoh noted that the initiative forms part of broader reforms aimed at ensuring that patients who require emergency care can be directed to facilities with available beds.
“There are reforms, expansions and the use of technology, all to deal with the problem. If we cannot eradicate it completely, we will minimise it, so that if any Ghanaian needs a bed, we can quickly identify where the bed is and refer the person appropriately.”
Visibility Over Available Beds
Hon. Akandoh explained that the digital system is intended to address situations where patients are turned away from health facilities on the grounds that no beds are available, despite the possibility of vacant beds elsewhere.
He said the lack of a coordinated national system has made it difficult for health authorities to establish where beds are available and direct patients to facilities that can provide the required care.
To address the challenge, the Minister said he established a small committee to develop a system that would give the Ministry of Health a national overview of bed availability. Screens connected to the platform will be installed at the command centre and in his office to enable him to monitor the situation across health facilities.
With the system operational, Hon. Akandoh said he would be able to verify claims of bed shortages at facilities such as the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and determine whether patients could be referred elsewhere.
Monitoring Emergency Stays
The platform will also enable health authorities to monitor patients who spend more than 24 hours in emergency units. Hon. Akandoh stated that the system would help the ministry identify such cases and demand explanations from facilities where patients remain in emergency units for extended periods.
Although some cases may require longer stays for legitimate medical reasons, he said the information would help the ministry examine how emergency beds are being used and identify areas requiring attention.
The Minister stressed that the country must make prudent use of its existing healthcare resources while efforts are made to expand capacity.
Improving Patient Referrals
Mr Akandoh identified referral coordination as another major challenge the system is expected to address.
He said health facilities sometimes report that they have no available beds when contacted to receive patients, even when beds may be available.
The digital platform will provide visibility into available beds across participating facilities, allowing health workers to make informed referral decisions instead of relying solely on telephone calls and individual reports.
“Sometimes you call a facility and they say there is no bed, and meanwhile there is a bed. With this visibility, you will be able to see where there is a bed and refer appropriately.”
He described the system as a potential game changer in emergency care, particularly in ensuring that patients are directed to facilities where they can receive timely treatment.
The IBMRCS is currently being piloted in the Greater Accra Region, with about 15 health facilities already participating in the initiative.
Mr Akandoh said the government intends to extend the system to all regional hospitals within the next three months before expanding it to district hospitals.
The phased rollout is expected to improve coordination between health facilities and provide a broader picture of bed availability across the country’s healthcare system.
Expansion of Emergency Units
While acknowledging concerns that digital bed management would not create additional physical beds, Mr Akandoh said the system is intended to improve the management of existing capacity and complement other measures to expand emergency services.
He disclosed that the government is considering the establishment of an emergency centre at the military, alongside plans to increase the number of beds in emergency units at major hospitals.
According to the Minister, the President is considering measures to support the expansion of emergency units at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Ridge Hospital, 37 Military Hospital and Tamale Teaching Hospital.
The measures form part of efforts to improve access to emergency care by combining better coordination of existing hospital resources with the expansion of emergency treatment capacity.
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