Address structural challenges of doctors’ posting
Earlier this month, the Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, expressed concern about the refusal of newly posted doctors to report to their duty stations and gave them an additional one-week grace period to report.
What the data reveals is nothing short of a national emergency.
For instance, this year, seven out of every 10 doctors posted to the regions have not reported. Out of 463 newly deployed medical officers, 305, roughly 66 per cent, are yet to take up their posts.
The Northern, North East, Upper East and Upper West regions are the hardest hit. In the Upper West Region, 25 out of the 32 allocated medical doctors had refused their postings, threatening healthcare access for nearly one million residents.
None of the 19 posted to the North East Region had reported, while of the 31 posted to the Western North, only two had reported, and only one out of the 21 had reported in the Oti Region.
However, the Greater Accra and Ashanti regions had the highest reporting rates, indicating a strong preference for urban areas even when the rural areas need them most.
In this context, the heartfelt appeal from Vice-President Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang to newly trained medical doctors to accept postings to underprivileged areas could not have come at a better time.
She reminded the newly trained doctors that their profession is, at its core, a national call to duty — one rooted in service, courage and equity.
She urged them to prioritise serving communities in need over personal convenience.
That shows the need for empathy and service in health care. As the country strives for universal health coverage, it is crucial that health care professionals prioritise serving where they are needed most.
Yet even as we call on doctors to serve, the Daily Graphic is of the view that we must acknowledge their frustrations.
Poor remuneration, inadequate incentives, and harsh working conditions, long highlighted by the Ghana Medical Association (GMA), cannot be brushed aside.
The GMA President, Dr Ernest Yorke, has made it clear that many rural facilities lack basic amenities, turning what should be a noble assignment into a daily struggle for survival.
He insists that bold, intentional reforms are what will close these gaps.
The Daily Graphic notes with optimism the Health Ministry’s ongoing collaboration with local authorities to make districts more hospitable for medical professionals.
The proposed 20 per cent salary increment for health workers who accept rural postings is a promising step.
But important questions remain — is this incentive substantial enough to outweigh the isolation and challenges of rural life?
Can it be sustained long-term?
Will it truly shift the urban bias entrenched in the system? As the Alliance for Reproductive Health Rights notes, the government must ensure that any incentive package given to health workers is substantial enough to outweigh the challenges of rural life.
We encourage the government to lean on the “Deprived Area Incentive” document developed with the GMA and other stakeholders.
Beyond salaries, rural postings should come with opportunities for professional development and specialisation, continuous training and structured rotation systems that prevent stress and allow health workers to experience different rural settings.
For far too long, the inequalities between urban and rural Ghana have quietly undermined healthcare.
Fixing this requires more than posting letters; it demands long-term investments in infrastructure, housing, transportation, education and safety. It requires making these communities whole, not just temporarily staffed.
Away from the policy complexities, there is also a moral truth for young doctors — accepting rural posting gives them a rare opportunity to transform a community, to save lives and make a meaningful impact.
We need the government’s commitment, community support, and, above all, a renewed sense of shared responsibility from the very professionals entrusted with our nation’s health.
