Medical laboratory scientists at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) have thrown their support behind the hospital’s suspended chief executive officer, arguing that a controversial decision to temporarily halt emergency admissions was necessary to protect patients amid severe resource constraints.

The Ghana Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists (GAMLS), KATH Chapter, said on Friday that the suspension of the hospital’s CEO by the Health Minister risked punishing management for taking what it described as a difficult but responsible decision in the face of an escalating healthcare crisis.

“The decision was not an arbitrary or malicious act,” the association said in a statement signed by its General Secretary, Dr. Samuel Kelvin Owusu.

“It was a responsible, evidence-based, and clinically informed decision made in the interest of patient safety and the sustainability of healthcare delivery at the hospital.”

The intervention follows a growing dispute over KATH’s announcement on 3 June that it would temporarily suspend emergency admissions because of overcrowding and capacity pressures.

The Ministry of Health subsequently suspended the hospital’s CEO for two weeks and ordered investigations into the circumstances surrounding the announcement.

But GAMLS said KATH’s management was responding to operational realities at one of Ghana’s busiest referral hospitals.

According to the association, the facility serves a population far beyond its intended capacity and faces persistent shortages of staff, medications, blood products, consumables and critical medical equipment.

The group argued that continuing to admit emergency patients without the resources to provide adequate care would have posed a greater risk to lives.

“Hospital management has a legal, ethical and professional obligation to avoid situations where patients are admitted but cannot receive adequate care due to resource constraints,” the statement said.

The laboratory scientists also expressed concern over plans to investigate comments made by the hospital’s Head of Public Affairs regarding the suspension of emergency admissions.

They said public communication about the hospital’s operational status was essential to protecting patients and managing expectations, urging authorities to ensure any investigation is conducted fairly.

The association called on the Health Minister to reconsider the suspension and instead engage hospital management on the underlying challenges facing the institution.

It also urged the government to address what it described as chronic underfunding at KATH, saying the current controversy reflects deeper structural problems within Ghana’s healthcare system.

The statement comes amid mounting pressure on authorities to improve healthcare infrastructure in the Ashanti Region, where KATH remains the principal referral centre for much of central and northern Ghana.

GAMLS said it stood in solidarity with the suspended CEO and the hospital’s management team, warning that Ghana’s health sector could not afford to lose experienced leadership over decisions taken in the interest of patient safety.