Mercy Acheampong used to join long queues to have a medical folder prepared for her or retrieved whenever she visited the hospital to see the doctor.
But that has changed in recent years, thanks to Ghana’s Lightwave Health Information Management System.
With this new system, Acheampong doesn’t have to provide the same information anytime she goes to the hospital, and her medical records are now digitised.
Implemented by the Ghana Health Service, the new system at major health facilities allows for the digital storage and management of patient health.
“I personally think it has helped greatly. No more taking longer duration searching for folders and pages or medical reports falling out,” she noted.
Ghana Health Service’s Lightwave Health Information Management System (LHIMS) started in 2018 and is a game-changer for healthcare in Ghana. It’s a holistic healthcare platform that enhances efficient health service delivery, providing reliable information to aid in decision-making throughout the health system.
Transforming healthcare delivery
Patient health records are now available at the point of care wherever a Ghanaian citizen is present physically, eliminating the need for creating new folders and having patient details and case history existing in silos.
The system provides accurate and timely data for hospital administrators, management, providers, and clinicians for vital decision-making needs and positive outcomes for patients.
Veronica Bani, a teacher based at Kpong in the Eastern Region, who had had an experience with the system said, “The digital system is very convenient than the folder system, in every situation there are exceptions and, in this case, sometimes the network is not stable.”
Patience Yirenkyi, a teacher, disclosed that, “I have come across the new digital system replacing the old folder system at public hospitals and health facilities. The good side of it is you can now have your health history anywhere you attend hospital. But its negative side, I see, is when the network jams you need to sit in hours before you will be attended to.”
Another individual, Mrs. Edith Narteye Nartey, Principal Nursing Officer In charge of NICU at the SDA Hospital in Sunyani, noted that “The system has contributed immensely to health delivery because we are able to keep the records of our patients and also help to continue to monitor them.”
Prior to the implementation of this system, patients typically endured lengthy wait times, often spanning several hours, just to obtain their medical folders before receiving attention at healthcare facilities.
It is worth noting that LHIMS has been successfully implemented in several hospitals, including Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) and Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), which have reported significant improvements in patient care, revenue management, and disease surveillance.
In the Dormaa Central Municipality in the Bono Region, Lightwave Health Information Management System is operational at two health facilities, the Dormaa Ahenkro Presbyterian Hospital and Amasu Health Centre.
In 2024, the Dormaa Ahenkro Presbyterian Hospital successfully enrolled 128,690 patients into the Lightwave Health Information Management System (LHIMS), while the Amasu Health Centre recorded 9,934 enrollments. The combined total from both facilities reached 138,624 patients, marking a significant milestone in healthcare management.
The Dormaa Central Municipal Director of the Ghana Health Service in the Bono Region, Daniel Konka, said the Lightwave Health Information Management System has helped to improve health delivery in the Municipality said, “The system is helping to reduce time waiting, patients no longer have to wait for long hours to get their information to access services.”
Mr Konka added, “The new LHIMS system reduces space, as a folder-less system reduces folders that would have taken space, thereby making it available for other services to be set up in those rooms.”
He also disclosed that, ”It has reduced workload. Many staff members were required to search and retrieve folders, but this system enables few people to do so.”
What are the challenges?
Mr. Konka also spoke on the challenges faced by the system.
“When there is power failure, it increases client waiting time and possibly not getting the needed services. Where internet issues persist, it poses a delay in retrieving information of the patient.”
He added, “Merging data into DHIMS2, which is a GHS data repository, is a challenge. Currently, in the municipality, only two facilities are using the LHIMS Dormaa Presbyterian Hospital and Amasu Health Centre.”
He called for improved Internet connectivity from the telecos to ensure smooth operation of the system and the extension of the system to other health facilities in the municipality to help improve health delivery in the municipality.
Solutions
Benedict Lamptey , Regional IT Manager Bono Regional Health Directorate, said,”System improvement is largely needed to help improve healthcare delivery in the region and Ghana as a whole. This particularly can help improve user experience.ICT infrastructure and other digital tools at all facilities connected to LHIMS must be improved. More computers/laptops, switches, and other peripherals.”
Lamptey noted, “Interoperability issues with the GHS District Health Information Management System (DHIMS2). The DHIMS2 is a web platform designed to collate aggregate health data from various levels of the health system into a centralised repository and so there need to be a link which also directs all data from the LHIMS system to that of the DHIMS. Currently, many facilities face challenges with data validation from the system, and this needs improvement and should be interoperable with the DHIMS.”
He disclosed that, “Most of the system operations and setup are merely different at each facility and thus makes it not standardised at the various levels of healthcare. Standardisation should be a priority to make the system efficient. Aside from the LHIMS systems security , which pertaining to information security and data protection has to be checked.”
He added that, “Another improvement tactic is to have a nationwide stakeholders meeting to review the system for efficiency and standardisation across all levels of healthcare delivery. In that regard, LHIMS can get the necessary and perfect input from real end-users to improve its system. Again an improvement strategy should be to look at empowering all IT Managers at the various levels to be the lead source of help desk before external source.
He disclosed, “Last but not least is the creation of a local backup at all facilities to help address issues of data loss when there are system challenges.”
This report is produced under the DPI Africa Journalism Fellowship programme of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) and Co-Develop.
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