The Society of Medical Laboratory Managers-Ghana (SMLM-G) has urged the government to expedite the placement of medical laboratory specialists in their rightful positions on the public sector salary scale, describing it as a critical step toward recognising their expertise and strengthening the country's healthcare system.
It said laboratory professionals play an indispensable role in delivering quality healthcare and deserve equitable remuneration that reflects their qualifications, specialist training and responsibilities.
Beyond salary placement, the group outlined other key policy requests to the government, including the inclusion of medical laboratory managers in the core management teams of hospitals, the establishment of a Medical Laboratory Council to regulate the profession, and the recruitment of unemployed medical laboratory graduates.
The Board Chairman of the SMLM-G, Dr David Sebbei Sackey, made this known at the fifth Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Society of Medical Laboratory Managers-Ghana (SMLM-G), held in Accra last Wednesday (July 23).
AGM
The two-day meeting was held on the theme, "Advancing quality medical laboratory services through sustainable financing and human resource management."
It served as a platform for members to collectively deliberate on the unique challenges confronting the profession and explore opportunities for the growth and development of society.
Notable among the dignitaries were the Greater Accra Regional Minister, Linda Obenewaa Akweley Ocloo, Kotobabi Mantse, Nii Nortey Opembuor Agbo III, who represented the Osu Mantse, HRM Nortse Nii Nortey Owuo IV as Chairman for the occasion, Director for Allied Health at Ministry of Health, Dr Ignatius Abowini Awinibonu Nchor, who represented the Minister of Health, Dr Kwabena Mintah Akandoh and the Director General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Samuel Akoriyea Kaba.
The rest are Deputy Board Chairman of SMLM-G, Dr David Sebbei Sackey, Dr Stephen Adusu, immediate past Chairman, Kofi Sroda, Dufia of Abutia, Anlo, Torgbi Kissi-Avuablatsi IV, Deputy CEO, Mental Health Authority, Dr Vivian Maame Aba Dadzie and Medical Diagnostics Lecturer at KNUST, Dr Laud Anthony Basing.
Urgency
Dr Sackey urged the Ministry of Health to treat the issues raised as a matter of urgency, stressing that quality laboratory services depended on sustained investment in equipment, reagents, maintenance, quality assurance systems, information technology, and accreditation.
He stated that addressing these challenges was essential to improving diagnostic services and ensuring the success of the government's primary healthcare agenda, in which laboratory diagnosis must play a central role.
Dr Sackey further urged members to remain united in advocating for reforms that would strengthen the profession and improve healthcare delivery across the country.
Modern healthcare
The Director-General of the GHS underscored the indispensable role of medical laboratory services in healthcare delivery, stressing that there could be "no modern health care without quality laboratory services".
Dr Kaba said every clinician, disease surveillance system and national public health programme depended on accurate, timely and reliable laboratory results, making laboratory services a cornerstone of modern medicine.
With the government's rollout of the Free Primary Healthcare Programme, he noted that demand for laboratory services would increase significantly, requiring not only more diagnostic equipment but also competent professionals, ethical leadership and continuous professional development.
"As Ghana rolls out the free primary health care programme, the demand for laboratory services will increase significantly. We will need more diagnostic equipment, and we will deploy them gradually," the GHS Director-General assured
Commitment
The Ministry of Health reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening medical laboratory services through improved financing, workforce development and greater involvement of laboratory managers in health care decision-making.
In a speech delivered by Dr Abowini Awinibonu Nchor on behalf of the Minister, he stated that rising costs of laboratory reagents, equipment, maintenance, quality assurance and accreditation continue to strain health facilities, many of which still rely on out-of-pocket payments and irregular donor funding.
To address these challenges, he highlighted ongoing reforms aimed at improving financing for laboratory services through the restructuring of the National Health Insurance Fund and Ghana's evolving three-tier health financing system, comprising Free Primary Health Care, the National Health Insurance Scheme and the Ghana Medical Trust Fund.
