Attorney-General urged to speed up prosecution of quack allied health professionals
The Allied Health Professions Council has appealed to the Attorney-General and the Judiciary to hasten the prosecution of quack allied professionals.
Mr Daniel Atta-Nyarko, the Acting Registrar, Allied Health Professions Council, said this was crucial as quacks had invaded the health delivery system, putting innocent lives in danger.
Mr Nyarko made the appeal at the induction and Oath swearing for over 2000 newly qualified allied health graduates by the Allied Health Professions Council of the Ministry of Health in Accra.
The graduates had completed various professional allied health programmes, including Audiology, Community Mental Health, Diagnostic Radiographer, Dietetics, Disease Control, Doctor of Optometry; Doctor of Medical Laboratory Science, and Medical Physics.
The rest are Speech and Language Therapy, Medical Laboratory Scientist, Nutrition, Environmental Health, Health Information, Health Promotion, Occupational therapist, Respiratory Therapist, Sonographer and Therapy Radiography.
They have become properly inducted into the health profession to undergo their mandatory internship and sign a social contract with the Ghanaian public as required by Section 10 of the Health Professions Regulatory Bodies Act, 2013 (Act 857) 2.
The induction and oath swearing ceremony was on the theme, “Eliminating Quacks to Promote Quality Healthcare in Achieving Universal Health Coverage: the Role of the Allied Health Professional”.
Mr Nyarko said ensuring safety, quality of care, and regulatory compliance within the healthcare delivery system required a well-designed and organised monitoring system as well as inspection system for allied health professionals and services.
He said it was in this light that the Council, with support from experts from the Federation of Allied Health Professionals this year, embarked on a “quacks elimination mission” with an aim to safeguard the interest of Ghanaians seeking healthcare to promote safety.
He called on the Government to, while addressing the brain drain menace, also bear in mind the phenomenon of brain wastage, saying that allied health professionals with the required skills should be sitting at home, wasting away.
Alhaji Manama Asei Seini, the Deputy Minister of Health, speaking at the event, emphasised the important role of allied health professionals in health service delivery, adding that the health sector could not thrive without them.
He noted that the immeasurable role they played was evident during the COVID-19 pandemic and urged them to collaborate with others to accomplish more for the smooth progress of healthcare delivery in the country.
Professor Francis Kasolo, the World Health Organization Country Representative, in his goodwill message, urged members of the graduating class to accord their internship all the seriousness, dedication and commitment for their future independent practice while upholding the highest moral and ethical standards.
“You are being sworn-in at a time where countries across the globe were struggling to make significant progress towards the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“You are being sworn-in at a time where countries across the globe were struggling to make significant progress towards the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Prof Kasolo said a well-resourced health force was crucial to the attainment of SDG three.
He said the issue of quacks in the country was a serious threat to Ghana’s gains made in its journey to attaining UHC and called for a well-resourced Council to ensure strict adherence and control of the Allied health professions practice.
Professor Samuel Antwi-Baffour, a Medical Laboratory Sciences Practitioner and educator in the field of Biomedical Sciences, urged the class to have empathy, show highest professionalism, teamwork, and learn continuously as they execute their duties.
Source: GNA