Former Minister of Health, Dr Bernard Okoe Boye, has dismissed recent claims made against Lightwave e-Healthcare Solutions, the company that implemented Ghana’s National e-Health Project, describing the ongoing controversy as an attempt to “give a dog a bad name to hang it.”
In a statement titled “The LHIMS Controversy: A Case of Giving the Dog a Bad Name to Hang It,” Dr Okoe Boye outlined the background of the project and challenged what he described as misinformation surrounding its implementation and management.
He explained that the National e-Health Project began in 2016 to digitize and network all government health facilities. The initiative, which started with 25 facilities in the Central Region, was expanded after a successful pilot.
“Following approvals from the Public Procurement Authority and the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Health signed a US$100 million contract in March 2019 with Lightwave e-Healthcare Solutions for a nationwide rollout” he revealed.
According to Dr Okoe Boye, Lightwave has so far digitized more than 450 health facilities, including four teaching hospitals, six regional hospitals, and over 240 district hospitals. More than 150,000 health workers have been trained under the project.
He noted that implementation delays were caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, supply-chain challenges, and difficulties in compliance by some facilities. Payments so far total US$76.99 million, with about US$23 million outstanding.
The former minister disputed several claims made by the current Minister of Health, including suggestions that Lightwave is a foreign company and that Ghana’s health data is stored outside the country.
“Lightwave is a wholly Ghanaian-owned company, and all patient data is stored locally in servers managed by the Ministry of Health,” he stated.
Dr Okoe Boye questioned the government’s decision to engage a new company, the Ghana Health Information Management System (GHIMS), to replace Lightwave.
He argued that GHIMS is not a state-owned entity and has digitized fewer than five facilities, compared to the extensive work already completed by Lightwave.
He warned that replacing Lightwave could lead to data loss, financial waste, and disruption of health services for millions of Ghanaians.
“The logical approach would be to allow any new vendor to continue from where Lightwave left off, not to redo completed work,” he advised.
Dr Okoe Boye called on the Chief of Staff to intervene and mediate between the Ministry of Health and Lightwave e-Healthcare Solutions to ensure a fair and transparent resolution that safeguards Ghana’s investment and protects national health data.
By: Jacob Aggrey
