Ghana needs revised regulatory framework for health professionals in order to safeguard public health and meet international best practices, says the President of the Ghana Association Biomedical Laboratory Scientists (GABMLS).

Prince Sodoke Amuzu is therefore advocating the speedy passage of the Health Professions Regulatory Bodies Bill, which would regulate the training and practice of allied health professions in the country when passed into law.

He was reacting to calls by Deputy Health Minister, Rojo Mettle-Nunoo, for members of the Association to take solace in the passage of other health-related bills.

Addressing the Annual National Congress of the GABMLS, holding in Kumasi, Mr. Mettle-Nunoo enjoined members of the Association to celebrate and congratulate parliament for passing “very strategic and critical bills for the health sector”, including the Mental Health Bill, Professional Institutions Bill and the Public Health Bill.

Prince Amuzu however says quackery in the allied health professions remains a major obstacle to quality health delivery.

“The particular legislation that can take away quackery has not been passed”, he told Luv Fm. “The regulation about bio-safety, public [and] mental health are all nice regulations that are useful for our healthcare system; but the professional that performs the duty is not regulated and those that are even regulated – Medical and Dental, Pharmacy and Nursing – their regulation is not competent because the laws are old and need review”.

According to Prince Amuzu, the challenges with the existing laws regulating the health services are addressed in the Health Professions Regulatory Bodies Bill.

The GABS scientific forum is discussing prevailing public health issues in the country, including new operating procedures, initiatives and standards of work.

The theme for the three-day Congress is “Strengthening Medical Laboratory Services and Systems in Ghana: Key in Promoting Quality Healthcare Delivery”.

Vice-President, Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, in a speech read for him, acknowledged that availability and access to quality laboratory services are among major challenges contributing to delayed or inappropriate responses to epidemics, disease control and patient management.

He therefore identified the “need for a comprehensive national laboratory policy which will focus on laboratory organization, structure and coordination. Such a policy should provide a guide for staff training, motivation and retention, the integration of services and standards for the provision and maintenance of essential facilities and equipment”.

President of the International Federation of Biomedical Laboratory Science, Professor Vincent Gallicchio is among reputable local and international speakers attending the Congress.

For him, there exists deficiency in the overall health system “without having properly structured, accredited and credential personnel, laboratory professionals as well as the hospitals [and] educational programmes to train them”.

Biomedical Laboratory Scientists are entrusted with the onerous assignment of providing quality diagnosis that is at the centre of treatment and management of diseases.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh