CareFlight Ghana, a private medical and emergency services provider, has launched what it describes as Ghana’s first Mobile Stroke Unit, a specialised ambulance equipped with a computed tomography (CT) scanner to diagnose and initiate treatment for stroke patients before they arrive at hospital.
The initiative is aimed at addressing delays caused by traffic congestion, limited emergency department capacity and difficulties accessing timely brain scans. Such delays can worsen the effects of a stroke, increasing the risk of death or permanent disability.
Speaking at the launch ceremony at The Bank Hospital in Accra on Thursday, October 29, the Medical Director of CareFlight Ghana, Dr Issaka Yakubu Akparibo, said the unit would bring essential elements of hospital care directly to patients, reducing the time spent waiting for diagnosis and treatment.
“We are now moving the hospital to the doorstep of the patient,” he said.
The specialised ambulance will be staffed by a doctor, a critical care nurse, a radiographer and an emergency medical technician, with remote support from a neurologist and a radiologist.
Dr Akparibo explained that the team would assess patients at their location, monitor and stabilise their condition, conduct brain scans and administer clot-dissolving medication where clinically appropriate before transporting them to The Bank Hospital, the unit’s designated receiving facility, for further treatment.
Emphasising the urgency of stroke intervention, he said: “From the onset of symptoms, if you lose one minute, you lose about two million of your brain cells.”
The Mobile Stroke Unit is expected to bring brain imaging and initial treatment closer to patients, enabling medical teams to make faster clinical decisions and determine the most appropriate course of treatment.
Dr Akparibo said CareFlight Ghana had initially deployed one unit because of the high cost of the specialised equipment but planned to expand the service gradually.
On his part, the Director of Technical Coordination at the Ministry of Health, Dr Hafiz Adam-Taher, welcomed the initiative, describing it as an important step towards making emergency healthcare delivery faster and more accessible.
He said the unit had the potential to bridge critical gaps between the onset of stroke symptoms and the delivery of treatment by bringing patient assessment, brain imaging and appropriate initial interventions closer to communities.
“The Ministry of Health will continue to welcome innovations of this kind, provided they are safe, well regulated, and woven into our national emergency and fire systems,” he said.
Dr Adam-Taher also called for measures to ensure that the service eventually extends beyond Accra to reach people in other parts of the country who live far from specialist medical facilities.
Also speaking at the ceremony, an emergency physician at The Bank Hospital, Dr Kenneth A. Ampoful, said the hospital was partnering with CareFlight Ghana as the receiving facility for patients transported by the Mobile Stroke Unit.
He explained that the initiative could improve early patient assessment, strengthen communication between emergency response teams and hospitals, and reduce the time it takes for patients to receive appropriate treatment.
Dr Ampoful stressed that the effectiveness of the service would depend on a coordinated chain of care, beginning with the recognition of stroke symptoms in communities and extending through pre-hospital treatment, hospital-based management and rehabilitation.
He said the partnership presented an opportunity to improve outcomes for stroke patients by strengthening the link between emergency medical services and hospital-based care.
The launch coincided with World Stroke Day, observed annually on October 29 to raise awareness of stroke, its prevention and treatment, and the need for improved care and support for survivors.