Gomoa Fetteh, Oct. 7 — The Ghana College of Nurses and Midwives (GCNM) has called for increased investment in specialist training to strengthen the country’s health system and enhance access to quality healthcare.
The call was made at the opening of the 10th Annual General Meeting (AGM) and 5th Scientific Conference of the College, held yesterday on the theme: “Enhancing Specialist Nursing and Midwifery Practice: A Call for Investment, Collaboration and Innovation.”
The five-day event also witnessed the induction of 833 newly admitted nurses and midwives into the College.
Delivering the keynote address, Associate Professor Adelaide Maria Ansah-Ofei of the University of Ghana School of Nursing and Midwifery, said Ghana’s health outcomes largely depended on how well the country invested in the continuous development, motivation, and equitable distribution of its nursing and midwifery workforce — which constitutes more than 70 per cent of the national health sector.
She stressed that investment in specialist training should be viewed not as a cost, but as a proactive strategy to reduce preventable deaths in intensive care units, labour wards, and emergency centres.
“When we invest in continuous professional development, we strengthen emergency response and retain skilled workers within the system,” she said.
Prof. Ansah-Ofei highlighted challenges such as inadequate workforce, unequal distribution of professionals, and poor working conditions, which continue to undermine effective healthcare delivery.
“Our numbers are still few, our distribution is still unequal, and far too often, our voices are not heard,” she lamented.
She further called for investment in infrastructure, capacity-building, and digital literacy to help health professionals adapt to modern demands, while urging government and development partners to expand residency programmes, provide more scholarships, and introduce incentives to make the profession more attractive.
“No patient should be left without the expertise of a specialist, and no community should be denied access to quality care because specialists are concentrated in the cities,” she added.
Chief Director of the Ministry of Health, Mr. Desmond Boateng, reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to collaborate with GCNM to expand professional pathways and enhance service delivery across all levels of care.
He noted that nurses and midwives play a central role in achieving national and global health targets, including Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and primary healthcare goals, but urged the College to strengthen its role in promoting professionalism and ethical conduct.
“Reports of poor communication, lapses in professionalism, and disrespectful encounters have affected the image of a profession long held in high esteem,” he observed.
“With your advanced training and ethical grounding, you must serve as role models and champions of excellence to restore public confidence in healthcare delivery.”
President of the College, Prof. Victoria Bam, appealed to government for support in the College’s infrastructural development agenda to expand access to specialist training in critical areas.
“Specialist education is expensive, and many of our residents struggle to afford it. Added to this is the worrying trend of nurses and midwives leaving for greener pastures,” she said.
“We advocate better funding, increased study leave with pay, and deliberate policies that encourage specialisation,” she added.
The conference brought together stakeholders in the health sector to deliberate on strategies to strengthen nursing and midwifery practice for sustainable healthcare delivery.
From Abigail Annoh, Gomoa Fetteh
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