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Public Services
OVERVIEW
Infrastructure
and Resources
The health industry comprises all firms directly in-
volved in the production and promotion of health care.
These include all firms (both public and private) that
are involved in the manufacturing of health products,
provision of health care, health enhancing services
and generation of knowledge in support of health.
The health industry as a new concept has not been
recognized and analyzed. The capacity of the local
manufacturing industry is under-utilized and the po-
tential of Ghana’s herbal and traditional medicines is
largely untapped.
The overall aim of the health sector is to promote
healthy lifestyles and reduce risk factors that arise
from environmental, economic, social and behav-
ioural causes.
A major prerequisite for a healthy population is how
individuals, families and communities take care of
themselves and the environment. Information with
the specific aim of empowering people to make the
right choice for healthy living has been seen as criti-
cal. The main disease burden of the country demon-
strates a preponderance of diseases resulting from
neglect of basic environmental practices and chang-
es in dietary habits, physical activities and adoption
of life threatening behaviour.
The structure of Ghana’s health industry consists of
the following:
•
Health Services
•
Communicable Disease Control
•
Non Communicable Disease Control
•
Reproductive and Sexual Health
•
Nutrition
•
Accident and Emergency Services
•
Clinical Care
•
Traditional and Alternative Medicine Practice
•
Rehabilitation
The national health vision is to attain middle income
status with 1000 USD per capita by the year 2015 by
creating wealth through health.
All regional capitals and most districts have hos-
pitals, polyclinics and clinics. Two teaching hospi-
tals in Accra and Kumasi have facilities for treating
special cases. Additionally, a number of religious
Medical Officers
2457
Pharmacists
1950
Community Health Nurses
3,864
Medical Assitant
840
% Districts with appointed
Health Information Officer
37%
General Nurses
8,544
Midwives
3,455
Indicator
2009 Performance
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
2009 Performance
Medical Officers
Pharmacists
General Nurses
Midwives
Community Health...
Medical Assistant
% Districts with...
INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES
Investment opportunities available in the health sec-
tor are in:
•
Hospitals and clinics
•
Health Centres
•
Maternity Homes
•
Hospital equipment
•
Laboratories
•
Research and development facilities
•
Drugs and pharmaceuticals
•
Chemical shops
•
Preventive products e.g. condoms, mosquito nets
Health Professional Density in Ghana, 2009
2009 Performance
organizations and private medical practitioners
operate hospitals and clinics all over the country.
Herbal medicine and psychic healing are also gen-
erally practiced, while a special government Herbal
Medicine Hospital and Research Centre exists at
Akwapim-Mampong.