The Member of Parliament for Afadjato South, Frank Afriyie, has criticised the persistent “no bed syndrome” in Ghana’s healthcare system, disclosing that he personally experienced delayed emergency care and was only attended to after his wife revealed his identity as an MP.
Speaking during parliamentary deliberations on the growing crisis of patients being turned away from hospitals over alleged bed shortages, the legislator described the practice as discriminatory and dangerous, arguing that access to urgent medical care should never depend on a patient’s social status.
According to him, he was initially denied admission at one of Ghana’s leading hospitals despite being unconscious. He told Parliament that it took his wife’s intervention — identifying him as a Member of Parliament — before hospital staff attended to him. He warned that, without that disclosure, the outcome could have been fatal.
The renewed debate over “no bed syndrome” follows the recent death of a young man in Accra who was reportedly turned away from three hospitals due to claims of unavailable beds, sparking public outrage and calls for urgent reforms in emergency healthcare delivery.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Minister of Health, Grace Ayensu-Danquah, has assured the public that steps are being taken to address the problem comprehensively and prevent further avoidable deaths linked to delays in emergency care.
