By Desmond Jumbam & Irene Dzirasa
If you have driven on the streets of Accra recently, you would probably have noticed people weaving through cars at traffic lights carrying signs with pictures of people with different types of medical conditions.
They are seeking donations for treatment and common images, which include children with a cleft lip or club foot, a woman with a facial tumour – conditions requiring surgical treatment.
Sometimes, the people in the photos stand by the side of the road while an individual speaks into a microphone beckoning passers-by to donate.
It can be hard to determine the credibility of these individuals or their organisations, but they are symptoms of a much larger public health problem; the dismal weakness of surgical care in the country.
This op-Ed was originally posted on Graphic Online on September 7, 2022.