Why UGMC wants more clinical trials to improve patient care

The Director of the Medical and Scientific Research Centre (MSRC) at the University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC), Professor Charles Hayfron-Benjamin, has called for stronger systems to ensure that scientific discoveries are translated into practical healthcare solutions for patients.

He said Ghana had scientists capable of producing high-quality research, but the country needed deliberate policies, infrastructure and partnerships to move research findings from laboratories into clinical practice.

Professor Hayfron-Benjamin made the call on the sidelines of the UGMC Research Symposium, held under the theme, “From Bench to Bedside: Integrating Research, Technology, and Clinical Care in Ghana.”

The two-day symposium, organised by the MSRC through its Research Training and Development Unit and Office of External Engagement, seeks to strengthen the link between scientific research and clinical care.

Professor Hayfron-Benjamin explained that UGMC operates as an academic medical centre, combining healthcare delivery with research to generate evidence that can improve patient outcomes.

“Academic medical centres are hospitals but, in addition to taking care of sick people, they do research to generate new evidence, and the new evidence goes back to help take care of patients in a more scientific, evidence-based way,” he said.

According to him, research is therefore central to UGMC’s mandate, with the annual symposium providing an opportunity for researchers to examine how discoveries can be developed and eventually applied in clinical settings.

He explained that the “bench” in the symposium’s theme referred to the laboratory, while the “bedside” represented the clinical environment where patients receive care.

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He said the challenge was to build the infrastructure and wider ecosystem needed to move discoveries through the various stages required before they could be safely applied to patient care.

Professor Hayfron-Benjamin cautioned against treating laboratory findings as immediately applicable to patients.

JKB/MA

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