The new Cardiac Catheterisation Laboratory (Cath Lab) at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital has provided specialised cardiac services to more than 80 patients within three months of its commissioning in July 2026.

Director of the National Cardiothoracic Centre, Dr Kow Entsua-Mensah, disclosed this when Parliament’s Select Committee on Health visited the hospital to assess the facility’s operations, utilisation and challenges affecting access to specialised cardiac care.

He said the laboratory began performing procedures within a week of its commissioning and has since been handling cases requiring advanced cardiovascular diagnosis and treatment.

According to Dr Entsua-Mensah, the facility plays a critical role in imaging blood vessels, diagnosing cardiovascular conditions and carrying out interventions to treat certain heart and blood vessel diseases.

He said demand for the laboratory’s services remained high, with at least four patients awaiting various procedures at the time of the committee’s visit.

“The new Cath Lab, as we are all aware, was commissioned by His Excellency the President in July. And by the following week, we had done more than 20 cases. And it has continued in that fashion up to now,”

“At the last count, more than 80 people have benefited from the services of the Cath Lab,”  he said.

Despite the progress, Dr Entsua-Mensah identified a shortage of adequately trained personnel as a major challenge that could affect the facility’s ability to operate at full capacity.

He called for increased investment in training and capacity building to equip more health professionals with the specialised skills required to operate the laboratory and expand access to its services.

“We need to accelerate its use. We have a country of about 35 million, and we need human resource. As the CEO has said, we need to train cardiologists, surgeons. We need to train cath lab technicians. These are people who are skilled in the running, the maintenance. It has so many capabilities” he added.