The Ghana Health Service (GHS) is scaling up its nationwide emergency care training programme to strengthen the country’s capacity to respond to medical emergencies at all levels of the health system.

The initiative is being personally championed by the Acting Director-General of the Service, Dr. Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, who has pledged to lead by example.

As part of the programme, Dr. Akoriyea—himself an experienced neurosurgeon—announced that he will personally conduct a training session focused on the management of head and spinal injuries, one of the most delicate and time-sensitive aspects of emergency care.

The Training of Trainers (ToT) programme, launched by GHS earlier this year, aims to build a robust emergency response system by equipping healthcare workers from CHPS compounds to regional hospitals with the skills and confidence to deliver immediate, life-saving interventions.

The initiative also aligns with Ghana’s broader goal of achieving universal health coverage (UHC) through improved readiness, response, and resilience in healthcare delivery.

Speaking at the closing ceremony of the first regional cohort, which drew participants from Central, Bono, Bono East, North East, and Greater Accra Regions, Dr. Akoriyea reaffirmed that emergency care training is no longer optional—it is essential.

He emphasized that every health worker, whether clinical or administrative, must be capable of performing basic life-saving procedures such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and choking management.

He further directed that emergency care training be integrated as a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) across all GHS training units, ensuring consistent capacity building nationwide.

The Director of the Institutional Care Division (ICD), Dr. Lawrence Ofori Boadu, also praised the initiative’s impact on improving service quality, noting that effective emergency care is a critical determinant of public confidence in the healthcare system.

He explained that each participating region now has three to four certified trainers across various specialties, who will cascade the training to colleagues at district and facility levels.

So far, 104 health professionals have successfully completed the training—52 at the GHS headquarters and another 52 in the first regional cohort.

The participants were certified in both primary and comprehensive emergency care, which included modules on trauma response, use of Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs), CPR, choking management, pain control, and defibrillator operation.