GHS tackles ‘no-bed syndrome’ with real-time bed tracking

The Ghana Health Service (GHS) is implementing an integrated bed management and referral coordination system to provide ambulance crews with real-time information on available beds and the capacity of health facilities to provide the required care, the Director-General of the service, Dr Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, has said.

Local solutions The GHS’ Deputy Director of the Clinical Services Development and Institutional Care Division, Dr Ebenezer Oduro-Mensah, said the Bed Management Bureau would provide real-time information on bed availability, particularly at regional and teaching hospitals.

In a speech read on his behalf at the Medical Innovation Expo 2026 organised by Academic City University through its BioInnovation Centre, Dr Akoriyea said the necessary intervention was a coordinated system that enabled patients to reach the right facility, with the appropriate equipment and skilled health professionals, at the right time.