Health Minister Moves to Formalise Inclusion of Laboratory Managers in Hospital Management Teams
The Minister for Health, Hon. Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has announced that the Ministry of Health will soon issue a formal circular directing all Ghana Health Service facilities to include Laboratory Managers in their core management teams.
The announcement was delivered at the 5th Annual General Meeting of the Society of Medical Laboratory Managers, Ghana (SMLM‑G), on Thursday, July 23, 2026, through a speech read on his behalf by the Director of Allied Health Services, Dr. Ignatius Awinibuno Abowini Nchor.
Addressing participants, the Minister acknowledged longstanding concerns about the limited involvement of Laboratory Managers in key decision‑making processes, despite their central role in healthcare delivery.
“The Ministry is committed to issuing a circular to all Ghana Health Service facilities to formalize the inclusion of Laboratory Managers in core management teams,” he stated.
He noted that Laboratory Managers possess specialised expertise essential to the effective running of health institutions — from diagnostic workflows and biosafety protocols to equipment maintenance, procurement, financing, and quality management systems.
The Minister stressed that decisions on staffing, budgeting, procurement, infrastructure, and service delivery must not be taken without the input of professionals who manage diagnostic services.
“For too long, laboratory services have been treated as a support unit that gets consulted after decisions are made. That must change.”
Hon. Akandoh emphasized that strengthening Ghana’s healthcare system requires elevating the role of laboratory professionals, whose work underpins diagnosis, disease surveillance, outbreak response, treatment monitoring, and public health interventions. Their exclusion from management discussions, he said, often leads to gaps in planning, resource allocation, and operational efficiency.
He assured members of SMLM‑G that government fully recognizes the strategic importance of laboratory services and is committed to creating governance structures that allow Laboratory Managers to contribute meaningfully at the highest levels.
The forthcoming circular is expected to provide clear direction to Ghana Health Service facilities nationwide, ensuring Laboratory Managers are represented on hospital management committees and other core decision‑making bodies.
Participants at the AGM welcomed the announcement, describing it as a major step toward addressing a longstanding professional concern and strengthening the voice of laboratory leaders within the health sector.
The Minister concluded by calling for sustained collaboration between policymakers, administrators, and laboratory professionals, noting that government alone cannot transform healthcare delivery.
Laboratory Managers, he said, are not merely administrators of diagnostic units but key stakeholders whose expertise is vital to building a responsive, efficient, and quality‑driven healthcare system for Ghana.
Michael Agbesi Kelly