The Ministry of Health (MOH) and its agencies have launched the National Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Strategy, which aims to prevent, reduce, and control Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs) and Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR).
The five-year strategy (2024-2028) seeks to establish a nationwide active integrated IPC programme as well as national preventive guidelines to improve patient safety and health outcomes.
Mr Kwaku Agyeman Manu, Minister of Health, who launched the strategy in Accra, said preventing infection-related harm to patients, health workers, and other users in healthcare facilities was crucial for achieving quality care, patient safety, health security, HAI reduction, and AMR.
He said that evidence from a multi-centre point-prevalence survey of HAIs in ten acute care Government hospitals in Ghana revealed that 184 Healthcare-Associated Infections were identified among 172 patients, corresponding to an overall prevalence of 8.2 per cent, with higher proportions of infections in secondary and tertiary care facilities.
The Minister noted that the most common Healthcare-Associated Infections were surgical site infections (32.6%), bloodstream infections (19.5%), urinary tract infections (18.5%), and respiratory tract infections (16.3%), with device-associated infections accounting for 7.1%.
“It is also instructive to note that the emergence and re-emergence of pandemics such as COVID-19 have taught us vital lessons which we have to take seriously. The development of this National Infection Prevention and Control Strategy is our direct response,” he said.
Mr Agyeman Manu said the strategy was developed in line with minimum IPC standard requirement as outlined in the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines on core components of IPC programmes and aligned with the vision of the Ministry.
He said that the implementation of the strategy would result a reduction of occupational infections in health care settings, as well as the reinforcement of other national public health programmes like HIV, tuberculosis, hepatitis, maternal and child health, to achieve global health security goal.
“The development of the strategy clearly demonstrates the commitment of our health sector to improve health outcomes for health workers, patients and communities,” he added.
He called on all stakeholders to support and ensure the strategy’s successful implementation.
Prof. Francis Kasolo, WHO Country Director in Ghana, stated that as nations across the world progressed in the implementation of roadmaps to deliver Universal Health Care, the IPC strategy, in addition to preventing avoidable harm to patients, would help lower healthcare costs.
He was convinced that implementing the policy in an integrated manner, with the participation of all stakeholders, including the private sector and relevant civil society organisations, would strengthen Ghana’s capacity for infection prevention and control.
“I look forward to a stronger health system where infection and prevention and control is a way of life and a primary approach for health service delivery, and not only a buzzword during health emergencies and outbreaks,” he said.
Prof. Kasolo emphasized the WHO’s commitment to supporting Ghana to build a strong health system in which facilities serve as centres of excellence, providing much-needed services to the people in a safe environment.
GNA