The government, through the Ghana Medical Trust Fund (GMTF), has begun the construction of a new Catheterisation laboratory (Cathlab) at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) to help expand access to comprehensive cardiac care for patients.

The facility, located between the Accident and Emergency Centre and the Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) facility, is expected to be completed and handed over for use within four months.

It is one of the three cathlabs being funded by the GMTF, also known as Mahama Cares. The Korle Bu and Tamale Teaching Hospitals will be the beneficiaries of the other two.

A cath lab is a hospital room with imaging equipment where cardiologists perform minimally invasive tests and procedures to diagnose and treat heart conditions.

Expansion

Although the initial idea was to construct only the Cathlab, the government has gone further to make it a cardiology and interventional centre to provide a wide range of services to patients who need such services.

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of KATH, Dr Paa Kwesi Baidoo, disclosed this while speaking during the KATH-Consultants/Specialists consultative forum in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region.

It was on the theme: “70 years of impacting lives: The role of quality in the pursuit of excellence”.

Physician’s tragic death

The swift move to construct the Cathlab followed the tragic death of Dr Kwame Adu Ofori, a 47-year-old emergency physician at KATH, in July 2025.

He suffered a myocardial infarction, a “heart attack”, and urgently required percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) because one of the blood vessels that supplied his heart was blocked.

To save his life, doctors needed to quickly do a special procedure to open the blocked vessel and restore blood flow.

This is usually done by passing a small tube through a blood vessel in the hand or leg to reach the heart, then using a balloon or placing a tiny metal tube (called a stent) to keep the blood vessel open.

Sadly, there was no catheterisation laboratory at KATH, and painfully, he died before gaining access to intervention in Accra.

Change things

He stated that when operational, the facility would change the way the hospital would respond to such cases, adding, “Most of the cases that are usually flown to India, Europe and the United States of America will be dealt with at KATH.”

He stated that the Ministry of Health, through the GMTF, would train health professionals to man the centre, stressing that doctors, biomedical engineers, nurses and other essential personnel would be trained ahead of its completion.

Hope

A consultant cardiologist at KATH, Dr Lambert Tetteh Appiah, said over the decades, the hospital could not do the needed interventions to save patients who suffered heart attacks, leading to their demise.

“We are hoping that the facility will come on stream as soon as possible and that if someone suffers a heart attack and he or she is able to get to the facility in real time, the person can be saved from death,” he said

Visit

The Administrator of the GMTF, Obuobia Darko-Opoku, has also led a team to inspect the commencement of works on the centre.

Speaking during the visit, Ms Darko-Opoku said the fund was determined to bridge the gap in communicable diseases across the country and further noted that the construction of the centre was a direct response to the needs identified.

“We are fast-tracking its construction because every day without the facility costs a lot of lives.

Together with our partners, we are ensuring equitable access to specialised treatment for all Ghanaians,” she stated.