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Ghana is said to have made significant progress in reducing neonatal and under-five mortality rates in the past two decades, but more work still needs to be done.
Per the Ghana Democratic Demographic and Health Survey 2022, the neonatal mortality rate has reduced over the years from 32 to 17 deaths per 1000 live births, the infant mortality rate is now 28 deaths per 1000 births, and the under-five mortality rate is 40 deaths per 1000 children.
Also, the maternal mortality ratio showed a slight progress from around 111 per 100,000 live births to 102 per 100,000 in 2022, with overall maternal deaths dropping from 875 in 2021 to 805 in 2022.
Additionally, 73 per cent of children aged 12 to 23 months have been fully vaccinated against all basic antigens.
This was made known by the acting Director-General of the GHS, Dr Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, in a speech read on his behalf by the Deputy Director-General of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Caroline Reindorf-Amissah.
He explained that the figures represented meaningful improvements compared to past decades, but said newborns continued to account for more than half of infant mortality.
He was speaking at the National Patient Safety and Healthcare Quality Conference organised by the Ministry of Health (MoH) and the Ghana Health Service (GHS) in Accra last Wednesday.
The two-day event was on the theme “Safe care for every newborn and every child”.
At the event, he launched the Patient Safety Strategy for Ghana document and also inaugurated the GHS Quality and Safety Coordination Committee to improve newborn care in the country.
Dr Akoriyea said the MoH, through the National Health Insurance Scheme, was expanding coverage for maternal and child health services with support from development partners.
He added that the ministry was strengthening financial flows to ensure that essential commodities were available at all levels, focusing on equity to ensure rural and underserved communities were not left behind.
A Newborn Care Advocate, Dr Isabella Sagoe-Moses, stated that most existing health facilities were often not purpose-built for newborn care and called for investment in infrastructure, basic equipment and reliable utilities.
She called for the inclusion of child health aspects in the planning and redesigning of healthcare facilities.
The Country Representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Fiona Braka, reiterated that the country had achieved 50 per cent of the WHO's 2021-2030 global Patient Safety
Action Plan criteria, as reported in the 2023 Global Patient Safety Member State survey.
She also called for accelerated efforts to meet the 2030 targets, as a lot of children faced risks from medication errors, hospital-acquired infections and delays in diagnosis.
She expressed the WHO commitment to support improvements in pediatric and newborn care in all healthcare settings and to ensure that no child was harmed while receiving care.
The Director of the Institutional Care Division (ICD), GHS, Dr Lawrence Ofori Boadu, said ensuring quality care for children to prevent lifelong consequences was important.
He called for a collective effort involving parents, caregivers, healthcare workers, and communities to prioritise child safety and implement safety measures.
