Korle Bu CEO fights ‘armchair’ tag
The Chief Executive Officer of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr. Opoku Ware Ampomah, has responded to calls by health unions to resign, or vacate from office after his tenure.
According to Dr. Opoku Ware, his active role in leadership and medical practice has greatly impacted the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.
He explained that he still practices as a plastic surgeon, despite his role as the head of Ghana’s premier hospital.
“I’m not an armchair CEO. I still do my work as a surgeon,” he stated, disclosing his continued involvement in the hospital’s day-to-day operations.
“We run a postgraduate programme, and we need people of a certain calibre to be on board and help, so I contribute in various instances,” he noted.
“If you sit at the top as just a leader for others to come and tell you what to do, then you don’t know what you want. Going to the grounds helps you understand the challenges and everything happening,” Dr. Ampomah stated.
Acknowledging the hospital’s challenges, he accepted that not all patients receive the best care but they “are working hard to improve on that”.
He also highlighted ongoing efforts to enhance intensive care capabilities at Korle-Bu.
Dr. Ampomah believes in leading by example by assisting colleagues in other institutions when they face challenges.
“I need to show that I am one of them. Sometimes my colleagues in other institutions, if they have any challenges or need help, I go there to help them as a professional” he stated.
“Korle Bu has a greater collection of medical minds compared to other hospitals,” he added in an interview on Asempa FM on Thursday, August 22, 2024.
It will be recalled that recently, six health unions cautioned the Ministry of Health against extending the tenure of Dr. Opoku Ware Ampomah as Chief Executive Officer of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital.
The unions include the Health Service Workers Union, the Ghana Federation of Allied Health Professionals of Korle Bu chapter, the Health Accounting Staff Association of Ghana, the Korle Bu Senior Staff Association, the Government and Hospital Pharmacists Association and the Ghana Registered Nursing and Midwives Association.
In a statement, the unions highlighted several reasons for their opposition, including inefficiencies in the CEO’s absence, resulting in operational paralysis, delays in approvals leading to shortages of essential supplies and conflict of interest, with the CEO’s interests conflicting with hospital goals, amongst others.