The Ministry of Health has appealed to members of the Komfo Anokye Doctors Association and Nurses Chapter to call off their ongoing strike action, which was triggered by the recent suspension of the hospital’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Paa Kwesi Baidoo.
In a press statement issued on 7th June 2026, the Ministry described the striking workers’ turn of events as “unfortunate”.
It urged all affected staff to return to work in the interest of public safety and patient care.
According to the Ministry’s statement, Dr Baidoo’s suspension is an administrative measure intended to facilitate an independent investigation into his unilateral decision to close the hospital’s Accident and Emergency Centre.
The Ministry revealed that the CEO announced a cessation of admissions into the critical emergency unit without prior authorisation from either the KATH Board or the Ministry of Health.
The government emphasised that Dr Baidoo’s closure directive directly violated a presidential mandate issued during the State of the Nation Address, which explicitly ordered all public health facilities to ensure emergency patients receive immediate attention and are never turned away under any circumstances.
“The decision to suspend the CEO of KATH… was carefully considered and taken in the interest of institutional accountability, patient safety, and the need to uphold administrative discipline within the health sector,” the Ministry stated, clarifying that Dr Baidoo was suspended strictly from his administrative duties as CEO and not as a medical officer.
Mitigating Measures and Ongoing Interventions
To ensure that emergency healthcare services remain accessible to the public during the industrial action, the Ghana Health Service has been directed to implement immediate mitigating measures.
Simultaneously, the Ministry is actively engaging with the striking doctors and nurses to resolve their grievances through established dialogue and dispute resolution channels.
Addressing broader operational anxieties raised by the KATH staff, the Ministry acknowledged the long-standing infrastructural challenges facing the hospital’s Accident and Emergency Centre.
The statement highlighted several ongoing national interventions aimed at easing the burden on major tertiary hospitals, including the continuous retooling of major hospitals to improve overall service delivery, the introduction of a National Bed Management System to optimise patient referrals, and preparatory work toward operationalising the National Emergency Centre at Burma Camp alongside selected Agenda 111 hospital projects.
Furthermore, the government noted the establishment of Cathlabs at KATH, Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, and Tamale Teaching Hospital, as well as steady progress on the Sewua Hospital Project, which is expected to be completed before the end of 2026.
The Ministry of Health’s Public Relations Unit concluded the statement by reassuring health professionals that the Minister does not maintain an adversarial posture toward them.
Instead, the Ministry reiterated its commitment to fostering a safe, professional, and collaborative working environment while protecting the lives of the general population.