Health service delivery at Ghana’s premier referral facility, Several patients left stranded as Doctors at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital suspend all Out-Patient Department services, has come under severe strain following a strike action by medical doctors which has led to the withdrawal of all Outpatient Department (OPD) services.

The industrial action, which is beginning to bite hard, has disrupted routine consultations, leaving hundreds of patients who normally rely on the facility for specialist care stranded or forced to seek alternative treatment elsewhere.

Patients arriving at the facility this morning were met with notices indicating the suspension of outpatient services, while only emergency and critical care cases are reportedly being attended to. The development has resulted in long queues at the emergency unit as cases that would ordinarily be managed at OPD are being redirected.

According to the association the decision comes after prolonged tensions that it believes are compromising patient safety and clinical decision-making.

The striking doctors are demanding that all specialised laboratory results be reviewed and validated by qualified Laboratory Physicians before release. It is also calling for unrestricted access to laboratory systems and equipment for both clinical and academic work.