The Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) is facing growing pressure as hundreds of patients who are medically fit for discharge remain on the wards because they cannot settle their hospital bills.
What begins as a financial challenge for families often ends as a daily operational headache for one of the country’s busiest referral hospitals.
Hospital managers say the situation is filling wards beyond capacity and leaving fewer beds for emergencies and scheduled surgeries.
Nurses and doctors must continue caring for patients who should already be home, stretching food supplies, medications and staff time.
Chief Executive Officer of KATH, Dr Paa Kwesi Baidoo, says the hospital has little room to manoeuvre.
While staff understand the hardship many families face, the facility cannot simply turn patients away without following due process and proper accounting.
He explains that some patients stay for weeks after recovery, quietly watching others wait for care.
“There are a lot of people you wish could go outside because once they are here, they occupy your bed and you cannot just tell them to get up and go,” Dr Baidoo said.
The delayed discharges create a chain reaction across the hospital. Patients arriving at the emergency unit may need surgery or specialist care, but cannot be moved to the wards because beds are already taken.
This slows theatre schedules, increases waiting times and puts recovery units under strain.
KATH’s reputation as a national referral centre also adds to the pressure. Patients travel from far beyond the Ashanti Region seeking advanced care, increasing admissions even as space becomes tighter.
Hospital authorities warn that unpaid bills also affect finances and the ability to pay suppliers. Without payment, management risks questions from oversight bodies, even when the care provided was lifesaving.
