- BY Grace Zigah
Patients seeking healthcare services at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi, the Ashanti Regional capital are grappling with long queues and delayed payment processes following a recent change in the hospital’s financial service provider.
According to source, the Mahama administration recently terminated the hospital’s longstanding contract with Fidelity Bank, which had been handling payment and revenue collection at KATH for several years.
The contract was instead awarded to Universal Merchant Bank (UMB).
However, the transition has not gone smoothly.
According to hospital sources and patient accounts, UMB’s inexperience in managing high-volume transactions within a major referral facility has resulted in significant operational bottlenecks.
Over the past weeks, long queues have been observed at various payment points within KATH, with some patients reportedly waiting for hours before their bills are processed.
This has caused frustration not only for patients and their families but also for medical staff who rely on swift payments to facilitate treatment and other hospital processes.
Fidelity Bank, before its contract termination, had developed a system that allowed for relatively quick payments and smoother revenue management.
Critics argue that the decision to replace the bank with UMB was not based on efficiency but political considerations.
Some hospital staff have also raised concerns that the ongoing payment delays could disrupt service delivery, particularly for emergency cases where immediate financial clearance is required before treatment.
Meanwhile, patients and civil society groups are calling on government and KATH management to urgently intervene to ease the congestion and ensure that the hospital’s operations are not compromised.
The Ministry of Health has yet to publicly respond to the concerns, but pressure is mounting for authorities to either support UMB in streamlining its operations or reconsider the bank’s suitability for the sensitive role.
