Africa CDC assesses Ghana’s viral hepatitis response

Story by: Regina Bless

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has conducted a three-day assessment of Ghana’s response to viral hepatitis, engaging health facilities across the Greater Accra Region to identify gaps and opportunities to strengthen prevention, testing, treatment and follow-up.

The assessment was led by the Head of Infectious Diseases at Africa CDC, Dr Serge Batcho, who was accompanied by officials from the Ghana Health Service, including the Programme Manager for the National Viral Hepatitis Control Programme, Dr Gerald Adiiboka, and Public Relations Officer Jacob Acquah-Andoh.

As part of the assessment, the team visited the 37 Military Hospital, Greater Accra Regional Hospital, Adabraka Polyclinic and Kaneshie Polyclinic. Discussions focused on the experiences of health workers in screening and managing hepatitis patients, as well as challenges affecting service delivery.

At the 37 Military Hospital, stakeholders highlighted the importance of integrating hepatitis services into existing health programmes and strengthening collaboration with the National Viral Hepatitis Control Programme. The need for improved access to hepatitis B viral load testing was also identified as a key priority.

Health officials further stressed the need for continuous training and capacity building for health workers to improve hepatitis prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, counselling and patient follow-up.

Dr Gerald Adiiboka said efforts were underway to expand access to hepatitis C treatment through the decentralisation of services and integration of hepatitis care into existing health facilities. He noted that strengthening the capacity of health workers would be essential as services are expanded.

At the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, Dr Emmanuel Addipa-Adapoe and hospital management explained that hepatitis services were being linked with existing HIV services. However, they pointed to challenges with laboratory services, particularly delays in receiving viral load results because samples are sent to a central laboratory.

The assessment also continued at Adabraka and Kaneshie Polyclinics, where health workers discussed screening, referrals, linkage to care and capacity-building needs.

The final engagement took place at the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC), where the team met heads of key departments to discuss the progress and challenges facing Ghana’s hepatitis response.

Dr Amoako Duah, Consultant Gastroenterologist and Head of Internal Medicine at UGMC, said the facility continues to manage patients with Hepatitis B and C, particularly as a referral centre. He, however, noted that the cost of laboratory investigations and medicines remains a major barrier for some patients, particularly because these services are not covered by the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

Dr Duah called for increased support for hepatitis test kits, reduced costs of investigations and treatment, and greater public education on hepatitis testing and prevention. He also advocated stronger collaboration between Africa CDC and the Government of Ghana to improve access to affordable medicines.

He further proposed considering Hepatitis B screening for students before they enter school and expressed optimism that the introduction of the Hepatitis B birth-dose vaccine would significantly strengthen prevention efforts.

Dr Batcho said the assessment was aimed at learning from existing programmes and facility-level experiences while identifying practical interventions that could be sustained within Ghana’s health system.

He explained that Africa CDC supports health interventions across 55 African countries, with priority given to countries based on disease burden and identified needs. He said Ghana was selected as one of the priority countries for the assessment.

According to Dr Batcho, the engagements provided valuable insight into Ghana’s existing hepatitis interventions, gaps and challenges and would help Africa CDC identify areas where additional support could strengthen the country’s response to Hepatitis B and C.

The assessment has therefore provided an opportunity for health authorities and development partners to identify practical measures to improve hepatitis prevention, diagnosis, treatment and long-term follow-up, while working towards more accessible and sustainable hepatitis services across Ghana.