The Paramount Chief and President of the Sunyani Traditional Council, Odeefour Ogyeamansan Boahen Korkor II, has issued a fiery call for the withdrawal of professional certificates of doctors and nurses who refuse postings to rural communities. He described the practice as a betrayal of national duty.
Addressing the 2025 Annual Performance Review Meeting of the Bono Regional Health Directorate of the Ghana Health Service in Sunyani on Thursday, March 26, 2026, the visibly concerned traditional ruler charged the Ministry of Health and the top hierarchy of the health service to enforce strict punitive measures to compel medical and nursing graduates to serve wherever they are posted.
His remarks, which drew massive applause from participants, come against the backdrop of a worsening staffing crisis in the Bono Region, where urban facilities are choked with health personnel, while rural communities are left to suffer without a single doctor or nurse.
“It is only in Ghana that employees dictate where they want to work. People are dying in rural areas because doctors and nurses prefer to overcrowd themselves in the cities. There must be deliberate punitive measures against such health personnel,” he fumed.
The Chief’s concerns were strongly reinforced by shocking statistics presented by the Bono Regional Director of Health Services, Dr. Osei Kuffour Affreh.
According to him, out of seven doctors who accepted postings to the region in 2024, only two remained at post. In 2025, although about 30 doctors initially accepted postings, only 12 stayed on, largely due to special motivation packages introduced by the Directorate.
The figures paint a grim picture of a system under strain, where critical healthcare delivery in deprived areas continues to suffer due to refusal of postings by trained professionals.
While advocating sanctions, Odeefour Ogyeamansan Boahen Korkor II, also called for improved conditions of service for health workers, but stressed that beneficiaries of public-funded education must honour their obligation to serve all Ghanaians, especially those in rural communities whose taxes support their training, allowances, and salaries.
In a further alarming revelation, the Omanhene expressed deep concern over rising maternal and infant mortality rates in the Bono Region.
The Regional Health Directorate’s report indicated that maternal deaths nearly doubled in 2025 compared to 2024. It was revealed that 38 pregnant women died in the Bono Region within the year under review.
In response, the Directorate, The Chronicle gathered, has set up a Regional Maternal Mortality Audit Taskforce to probe the underlying causes and recommend urgent interventions.
The Regional Director of Health Services, Dr. Osei Kuffour Affreh, who assumed office a few months ago, assured to do everything possible in collaboration with all stakeholders to reverse the unfortunate trend.
By Edmond Gyebi
