The Ministry of Health, Ghana is in charge of seeing the success of the governmental vision which seeks a universal health coverage for Ghanaians and a healthy population. The Ministry is therefore in charge of improving the the health status of all people living in Ghana.
What is done by the ministry to achieve its mandate?
The Ministry of Health, Ghana operates sustainable health programmes to ensure the efficient realization of its policies which are
- Bridging equity gaps in access to health care and nutrition services
- Ensuring sustainable financing arrangements that protect the poor.
- Strengthening governance and improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the health system.
- Improving quality of health services delivery which includes mental health services.
- Enhancing national capacity for the attainment of the health related MDGs and the gains
- Intensifying prevention and control of communicable and non-communicable diseases.
Why does the ministry spearhead health programmes?
The Ministry of Health,Ghana operates health programmes in the country to enable it play its roles in the country. The roles of the ministry are;
- Provision of overall policy direction for all stakeholders (players) in the health delivery.
- Provision of a strong and effective advocacy role in intersectoral action in the health delivery.
- Mobilization and allocation of resources to all providers in the health delivery services.
- Provision of relevant and adequate information for co-ordination and management of health services.
- Provision of regulatory framework for all providers of health services.
- Monitoring and evaluation of health services in Ghana.
What are the health programmes run by the ministry?
Ghana’s ministry of Ghana currently operates and supervises four health programmes across the country which are;
- Nutrition and malaria control for child survival
- Millennium accelerated framework programme
- Climate change health project
- Regenerative health and nutrition
Nutrition and malaria control for child survival
The Nutrition and Malaria Control for Child Survival Project for Ghana is a developmental programme geared towards improving utilization of selected community-based health and nutrition services for children under the age of two and pregnant women in the selected districts of Ghana.
The ministry has taken over a programme like this because of;
- Sub-optimal implementation progress with more than a year and a half’s delay in scaling up interventions of people in need of that
- Weak ownership of the project by other implementing agencies
- Sub-optimal management capacity of other implementing agencies
Climate change health project
Climate Health Ghana project is national strategy for mainstreaming climate change risks into health sector policies and measures which are developed and implemented by the Ministry of Health.
The pilot interventions of this programme can be found in
- Keta District
- Gomoa West/Apam District
- Bongo District
Regenerative health and nutrition
The Regenerative Health and Nutrition (RHN) Programme is a new preventive and promotive health care programme initiated by the Ministry of Health (MOH). It aims to transform the health, lives and socioeconomic development of Ghanaians.
It is a logical policy programme after health insurance. Its long term effect can bring about a reduction in the cost of lifestyle diseases such as
- Hypertension
- Diabetes
- Cancer
- Gout
It also aims at others which are currently on the increase. Lifestyle changes include what people eat and drink, and their physical activity levels, rest, and cleanliness
The main objective of the programme is to reduce the risk of occurrence of diseases and disorders for individuals, households and communities so as to contribute to the development of a healthier and productive population that can create wealth for itself and the country.
Millennium accelerated framework programme
The Millennium Acceleration Framework programme focuses on improving maternal health at both community and health care facilities through the use of evidence-based, feasible and cost effective interventions in other to achieve accelerated reduction in maternal and newborn deaths.
The three key priorities interventions areas identified;
- Improving Family planning
- Skilled delivery
- Emergency Obstetric and Newborn care.
Programmes run by the Ministry of Health,Ghana are preventive-oriented and seek to liberate the ordinary Ghanaian from dangerous ailments.
