Towards a Robust, Patient-Centred Healthcare System: Why Ghana Must Reexamine Redundant Licensing Hurdles

As Ghana charts its path toward sustainable national development, healthcare delivery remains the heartbeat of our communities.

Recent consultations between the National Executive Committee of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA), led by Professor (Dr.) Ernest Yorke, the Junior Doctors Association (JDA) led by Dr Abu Sulemanna and NPP 2028 presidential candidate Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia brought critical sector challenges to the fore, ranging from workforce retention and remuneration to infrastructure and emergency preparedness.

Yet, among all the pressing issues discussed, one specific policy requirement demands our urgent, unfiltered attention: the Medical and Dental Council’s (MDC) proposed licensing examinations for locally trained doctors.

The Strength and Rigor of Local Medical Training
Having walked the halls of medical training myself as a practitioner, I know firsthand the grueling, world-class standard of medical education in Ghana. Institutions such as the University of Ghana Medical School (Korle Bu) and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) do not simply educate doctors; they forge them through rigorous, uncompromising academic and clinical evaluation.

Consider the anatomy of a final medical examination in our premier Ghanaian medical schools:
• The Multiple-Choice Component: A punishing section where precision is paramount, and every single incorrect answer actively deducts points from the candidate’s overall score.
• The Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE): Conducted to strict international benchmarks, mirroring the highest clinical standards of the United Kingdom.
• The Viva and Endless Logbooks: Comprehensive oral defenses coupled with exhaustive logbook requirements where clinical supervisors must personally attest that a candidate has fully attained the rigorous competencies required to safeguard human life.

To suggest that doctors who successfully navigate this multi-layered, intensely demanding crucible require an additional, singular multiple-choice licensing exam to prove their competence defies logic.

It is a redundant barrier that serves little purpose other than adding administrative fatigue to professionals who are already heavily vetted.

Oversight, Not Redundancy
If the primary motivation behind the MDC’s proposed examination is to observe and maintain professional standards, a licensing exam is entirely unnecessary. The Council can easily send a representative to directly oversee examinations at our established, licensed medical schools. By observing our existing final assessments firsthand, the MDC can satisfy any regulatory oversight requirements without subjecting graduates to a repetitive, unnecessary hurdle.

Brain Drain vs. Redundant Hurdles
The rigorous nature of our local medical examinations is precisely why locally trained Ghanaian doctors are globally sought after and integrate seamlessly into healthcare systems in North America and the UK.
However, instead of celebrating and protecting the integrity of our homegrown training institutions, introducing redundant bureaucratic hurdles risks exacerbating the existing brain drain.

We are facing genuine challenges regarding health workforce retention and the equitable distribution of medical professionals across deprived areas. Burdening newly graduated doctors with superfluous exams rather than streamlining their entry into active service where communities desperately need them runs counter to building a responsive health sector.

A Call for a Policy Shift
Healthcare delivery is a collaborative mission. To build a robust, resilient, and patient-centred healthcare system, we must listen closely to the lived realities of medical practitioners. It is time to align our regulatory frameworks with common reasoning, honor the unmatched standard of Ghanaian medical education, and work hand in hand with our healthcare heroes to remove unnecessary barriers.