The Ghana Medical Trust Fund (GMTF) is shifting beyond the payment of medical bills to tackle the deep structural challenges limiting access to specialised healthcare in Ghana.
From new cardiac centres in Kumasi and Tamale to a planned comprehensive cancer facility at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital and a US$10 million Diagnostic and Imaging Centre at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, the Trust Fund is rolling out an ambitious strategy to strengthen the country’s capacity to diagnose and treat serious diseases closer to where patients live.
The Administrator of the Fund, Adjoa Obuobia Darko-Opoku, says the approach is informed by a nationwide assessment which showed that financial assistance alone cannot resolve the challenges facing patients with chronic and non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
The assessment, conducted across teaching, regional and referral hospitals, examined health facility gaps as well as patients’ experiences, distances travelled for care, waiting times, specialist shortages and the constraints facing health professionals.
Speaking at an event organised by the State Interests and Governance Authority (SIGA), Mrs Darko-Opoku said the findings have shaped the Fund’s strategy to simultaneously tackle affordability, infrastructure, equipment, specialist shortages and research.
Four Problems, One Strategy:
The GMTF’s intervention is anchored on four interconnected pillars: financial assistance for eligible patients requiring specialised treatment for chronic diseases; investment in medical equipment and infrastructure; specialist training and human capacity development; and research and innovation in NCDs.
For the Administrator, the pillars cannot be separated.
“Funding treatment does not help much without the right equipment. Equipment is not useful without trained specialists, and ongoing care needs research to help us learn and improve,” she said.
*Taking Specialist Heart Care Beyond Accra*
Following the fire at the National Cardiothoracic Centre at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, the Trust Fund supported the rebuilding and expansion of the cardiac catheterisation laboratory.
But its intervention will not end at Korle Bu.
Construction is underway on new cardiac catheterisation centres at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital and the Tamale Teaching Hospital, which the Fund expects to fully equip, commission and bring into operation by the end of the year.
The expansion is expected to significantly improve geographic access to specialised cardiac services and reduce the burden on patients who currently travel long distances for care.
Big Cancer-Care Ambition for Korle Bu:
At Korle Bu, the Fund is pursuing another major intervention – a comprehensive Oncology and Nuclear Medicine Centre to be developed with private investors.
The planned facility will include a PET-CT scanner, linear accelerators, MRI and CT scanners and a chemotherapy suite.
The objective is to establish an integrated cancer-care pathway within the public health system, bringing diagnosis, advanced imaging, treatment and nuclear medicine under one roof.
US$10m Diagnostic Centre for Ridge:
The Greater Accra Regional Hospital, which attends to about 800 patients daily, is also set for a major boost after the Fund identified a significant deficit in advanced diagnostic and imaging services at the facility.
Following engagement with Corporate Ghana, the KGL Group has committed US$10 million towards the establishment of a purpose-built Diagnostic and Imaging Centre.
The proposed facility will house advanced diagnostic services including MRI, CT scan, mammography, digital X-ray and fluoroscopy. According to the Administrator, the site has already been secured and preparatory processes are underway.
No More ‘Buy, Install and Abandon’:
Mrs Darko-Opoku said the Fund also intends to confront another persistent challenge with public medical infrastructure – the maintenance of expensive equipment after installation.
She said GMTF’s responsibility will not end with procurement. Equipment and infrastructure being provided will remain under the care of the Trust Fund, with deliberate systems for management, servicing and maintenance to ensure long-term functionality.
The Fund is also directing donated medical equipment to hospitals based on evidence from its nationwide needs assessment, rather than distributing equipment without regard to actual need.
Bringing Specialists Closer to Patients:
The assessment also revealed critical shortages of specialists, which force many patients with chronic diseases to travel outside their regions for advanced treatment.
The GMTF has consequently partnered with professional colleges to invest in specialist training, with the ambition to ensure every region has at least 10 specialists within the next few years.
The Fund is complementing this with research and innovation, using data from patient care, disease trends, hospital needs and treatment outcomes to guide future interventions.
Over 500 Patients Already Onboarded:
Even as it builds long-term capacity, the GMTF continues its direct patient-support mandate.
After piloting its processes with 50 patients drawn from across the country, the Fund developed GMTF Care, a digital platform for patient registration, case management, approvals, claims and payments. More than 500 patients have so far been onboarded onto the platform.
Mrs Darko-Opoku credited President John Dramani Mahama, Vice President Prof. Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, government appointees, the Ministry of Health, the National Health Insurance Authority and the Fund’s Board of Trustees for supporting the institution’s development.
She said personal financial contributions from the President, Vice President and government appointees provided critical seed funding that enabled the Fund to begin supporting patients.
Corporate Ghana is also increasingly joining the effort. The Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) is procuring a 64-slice CT scanner and mammography machine, while the Ghana Gold Board has pledged an MRI machine for the Fund.
She appealed for more partnerships from state-owned enterprises, private companies, development partners and other institutions.
For her, the success of the Ghana Medical Trust Fund will ultimately not be measured by the number of projects announced or meetings held.
“The real test is whether a Ghanaian diagnosed with a non-communicable disease can obtain affordable treatment, access the right equipment and find the specialist they need without being left behind.
It is about having the right equipment, the right specialist nearby, and affordable treatment,” she said.
