The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has temporarily handed over a GH¢1.4 million Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) machine from the Greater Accra Regional Hospital (Ridge) to the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC) to support the treatment of critically ill patients.
The equipment was acquired during the preparation for the separation of the conjoined twins treated in Ghana between 2019 and 2021 and was actively used during the complex procedure.
ECMO is an advanced life-support system that temporarily pumps and oxygenates a patient’s blood outside the body when the heart or lungs are unable to function adequately.
GHS Director-General Professor Samuel Kaba Akoriyea said the decision to transfer the machine was taken because Ridge currently lacks the technical capacity to use it regularly, while UGMC has the specialised personnel and facilities to make greater use of it.
He said keeping the machine at Ridge without sufficient capacity could leave an expensive piece of equipment underutilised, while repeatedly moving it between facilities could also expose it to damage.
“Keeping the equipment will not benefit the hospital. So we decided that, on gentleman agreement, we’ll release it temporarily to the UGMC to maximise its use.”
Professor Kaba said the machine cost about GH¢1.4 million at an exchange rate of GH¢3.60 to US$1 at the time of purchase, noting that similar ECMO systems can cost between US$250,000 and US$500,000, depending on their complexity.
He said the transfer is part of a broader effort by the GHS to ensure that medical equipment is matched with the level of healthcare and expertise available at each facility.
According to him, UGMC, as Ghana’s quaternary healthcare facility, is expected to provide highly specialised care for complex conditions that may otherwise require patients to seek treatment outside the country.
He said sharing equipment between public facilities could also reduce duplication and government expenditure while ensuring expensive equipment is used and maintained properly.
Chief Executive Officer of UGMC, Dr Abdul-Samed Tanko, said the ECMO machine would strengthen the centre’s capacity to manage complex cardiovascular and respiratory conditions.
He said the equipment is particularly important for cardiac surgery and severe respiratory failure.
“This will go a long way to help UGMC to upgrade its clinical care when it comes to areas of cardiovascular and as well as respiratory problems.”
Dr Tanko said UGMC already has an ECMO machine, but the newly transferred equipment is more sophisticated.
He assured the GHS that the centre would maintain the equipment properly, pointing to its dedicated equipment maintenance fund, routine maintenance arrangements and biomedical engineering team.
The Greater Accra Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Robert Amesiya, said the transfer would ensure that the machine remains available to the public health system rather than being kept idle at Ridge.
He said the equipment would remain at UGMC until Ridge develops the capacity to undertake complex procedures requiring ECMO support.
The GHS said the arrangement forms part of efforts to better align health infrastructure, equipment and personnel to improve efficiency and access to specialised healthcare.