Gov't procures new Ghana Healthcare Information Management System (GHIMS) to restore digital health services

The Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, has announced the government’s procurement of a new digital platform — the Ghana Healthcare Information Management System (GHIMS) — to resolve the ongoing breakdown in the nation’s electronic healthcare infrastructure and ensure continuity in service delivery.

Speaking at the Government Accountability Series on Wednesday, October 29, Mr. Akandoh outlined a four-week roadmap to fully migrate health facilities onto the new system.

He said the transition will begin with teaching hospitals, regional hospitals, and major district facilities in the first week, followed by district hospitals in the second week, and clinics, health centres, and CHPS compounds in the third week.

“I am confidently announcing to the good people of this country that we have a four-week plan that will get us out of this mess,” the Minister stated.

The nationwide system failure, which affected record-keeping and patient processing, has forced many hospitals — particularly in the Ashanti Region — to revert to manual operations, causing long delays and patient frustration.

Mr. Akandoh attributed the disruption to the Lightwave Health Information Management System Limited, the private company previously contracted in 2019 under a $100 million agreement to connect 950 health facilities.

However, he revealed that the firm delivered only 450 connections by the time the contract expired in 2024.

Following a forensic audit, the government found serious lapses in both software performance and supplied hardware.

The Minister said attempts to retrieve control of the system were further complicated because the data was hosted on cloud servers in India, limiting Ghana’s access.

He assured the public that the government is taking firm steps to reclaim, rebuild, and modernize the country’s digital health infrastructure.

“The medical records of Ghanaians would never go back to the manual way. We are moving forward — responsibly, confidently, and decisively,” Mr. Akandoh affirmed.

The new GHIMS platform, he added, will be implemented with greater transparency, oversight, and accountability to prevent future disruptions.

Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith