It expressed deep worry over the prevailing situation where the Allied Health Professions Council (AHPC) was refusing to register and license biochemists, biological scientists, chemists and science laboratory and technologists in clinical and medical science.
A statement issued by the society and signed by its President, Mr. Elisha Nketia-Larbi, in Kumasi, a copy of which was made available to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said this was completely unacceptable and unhelpful to quality healthcare delivery.
It underlined the critical role members of the society had been playing in both preventive and curative medicine through laboratory services and said there was an urgent need for a law to regularize their practice.
That, the statement indicated, was the way forward to end the present state of affairs, where their members were barred from being employed by the Ghana Health service (GHS) and related health facilities because they “are not licensed to practice”.
“The society is of the humble opinion that since our members are equally qualified, there should be no reason to prevent us from being registered and employed by the GHS and related agencies.”
The statement noted that the “majority of hospital laboratories have clinical biochemistry and microbiology, as well as other specialized activities” that required the services of medical scientists.
They had been providing diagnostic expert advice for the management of patients with biochemical abnormalities and should not continue to be shabbily treated by anybody.
Source: GNA/News Ghana
