KATH records first decline in maternal deaths in a decade

The Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) has recorded a significant decline in institutional maternal deaths, marking the first such reduction at the facility in a decade.

The hospital recorded 55 maternal deaths between January and June 2026, down from 78 recorded during the same period in 2025.

The development represents a reduction of 23 maternal deaths and has been described by the hospital’s management as a major step in its efforts to improve maternal healthcare.

Speaking at the opening of KATH’s 2026 Mid-year Performance Review Conference in Kumasi, the Chief Executive Officer of the hospital, Dr Paa Kwesi Baidoo, said the reduction was particularly significant given the hospital’s history of high maternal mortality.

“We recorded a welcome reduction in institutional maternal deaths from 78 at mid-year 2025 to 55 in the corresponding period in 2026,” he said.

Dr Baidoo attributed the improvement partly to the operationalisation of the hospital’s Maternal Intensive Care Unit, which was established with support from specialists in anaesthesia and intensive care.

The unit has an eight-bed capacity, although four beds are currently operational. According to Dr Baidoo, the full activation of the unit could contribute to a further reduction in maternal deaths.

He said the development reflected the efforts of specialists at KATH to improve the survival of women requiring critical maternal care.

“No woman should die,” Dr Baidoo stressed, noting that the latest figures were the first decline in the hospital’s maternal mortality in about ten years.

Meanwhile, KATH has completed work on an Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) Centre, which is expected to be operationalised this month.

Dr Baidoo said the facility would make KATH the first public health institution in Ghana to have a state-of-the-art specialist fertility centre.

The development forms part of the hospital’s broader efforts to expand access to specialised healthcare services and improve outcomes for patients.

Source: GNA