Bawumia launches National E-Health Project to transform Ghana's healthcare system

Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has launched Ghana’s National E-Health Project, also known as the Lightwave Health Information Management System (LHIMS).

This Electronic Health Record (EHR) system aims to deliver efficient, integrated healthcare across the nation, streamlining medical record management and enhancing patient outcomes.

Addressing the launch event on October 30, 2024, Dr. Bawumia emphasised the significance of the project, stating, “The National E-Health Project is a monumental step towards a seamless healthcare system. This initiative supports our goal of harnessing digital solutions to enhance healthcare delivery, governance, and patient outcomes in Ghana.”

He continued, “Again, the rollout of the LHIMS application has become the main backbone for the integration of all other services and operations at health facilities deployed on the LHIMS. Onsite banks across these facilities have been successfully integrated with LHIMS to facilitate cash payments, reduce wait times at cash counters, and improve the visibility of funds at the hospitals. Diagnostics equipment such as analyzers are all integrated at the various health facilities with the LHIMS to ensure end-to-end data flow for decision-making.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, one initiative I launched last year is the issuance of the Ghana Card Number at birth project which is integrated with this LHIMS application as the main patient health record system for capturing baby and parent’s details at the various hospitals.

“The National Electronic Pharmacy Platform (NEPP), which I also launched in 2022, seeks to ensure safe and secure access to medications and pharmaceutical services in the country, is also integrated with the LHIMS for drugs data at the various facilities to ensure continuum of care,” Dr. Bawumia stated.

According to him, LHIMS has already made a significant impact.

He explained that the availability of real-time, accessible patient records has reduced wait times by up to 40% in some facilities and increased revenue accuracy by around 30%.

With disease tracking and surveillance capabilities, LHIMS enables healthcare teams to respond swiftly to potential health threats, enhancing epidemic management.

Dr. Bernard Okoe Boye, the Minister of Health, praised the new facelift of the health sector. According to him, the government prioritises the well-being of the citizens and aims to address all health-related needs in the country. He called for continued government support to address healthcare issues.

A vital feature of LHIMS is its integration with the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) system, which verifies patient coverage at registration. This has streamlined claims processing, reduced fraudulent claims, and saved the NHIA nearly 30% through improved claim accuracy and timeliness.

Public health teams can now access real-time data on bed availability, specialist access, and emergency room loads, enabling data-driven decision-making.

The foundation for this digital transformation was laid in 2017 with the Ministry of Health’s pilot project, developed by Lightwave E-Healthcare Solution Ltd. After a successful pilot in 2018, the program expanded, reaching full-scale approval in 2019.

The LHIMS is operational across all six Teaching Hospitals, ten Regional Hospitals, three Psychiatric Hospitals, 243 District Hospitals, 50 Polyclinics, and over 1,000 health centers, spanning Ghana’s 16 regions. Ongoing efforts are extending this system to additional Health Centres and CHPS Compounds.



AM/MA

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