Dr. Daniel Amaning, the Registrar of the Pharmacy Council of Ghana, has underscored the importance of adopting telemedicine in Ghana to enhance healthcare services and address the increasing demands of patients.
He highlighted that telemedicine provides substantial advantages and improves access to medical care for individuals residing in regions with inadequate healthcare resources.
During his address at the West Africa Pharma and Healthcare Expo in Accra on Wednesday, May 2025, Dr. Amaning remarked that telemedicine enhances healthcare accessibility and lowers medical expenses.
Telemedicine facilitates remote clinical services through real-time audio-visual interactions between patients and healthcare professionals.
It encompasses virtual consultations, remote patient monitoring, and the exchange of medical data, delivering notable advantages to areas with restricted healthcare access.
Dr. Amaning further stated that the rollout of the National Electronic Pharmacy (NEP) will strengthen pharmaceutical oversight, enhance access to safe medications, and guarantee the precision of medical information.
He elaborated that NEP also allows for the regulation of telemedicine, incorporating measures to prevent the dispensing of certain medications through the platform, even with a prescription.
He urged for greater collaboration within the pharmaceutical sector to promote the advancement of telemedicine in Ghana. Pharmacist Samuel Otuo-Serebour, Managing Director of Dragnet Ghana, also supported the concept of telepharmacy, emphasizing its time-saving benefits, convenience, and the assurance of patient confidentiality.
Telepharmacy facilitates swift access to medications from the comfort of one’s home in real time, he stated. He encouraged the pharmaceutical sector to adopt telepharmacy, emphasizing its significant market opportunities. Drugnet, he mentioned, is actively seeking collaborators to enhance the telemedicine field.
Mr. Otuo-Serebour asserted that Drugnet is transforming the healthcare landscape in Ghana by guaranteeing access to quality, safe, and affordable medications.
He elaborated that Drugnet employs qualified and certified nurses at the core of telepharmacy, ensuring that prescriptions are accurately validated before delivery.
The fundamental concept of telemedicine is to offer a more responsible approach to medication delivery for patients, he clarified.
The pharmacist cautioned that medications can be either life-saving or dangerous, highlighting the essential role of pharmacists in promoting safe drug usage.
He pointed out that Drugnet utilizes an AI-driven application that allows patients to interact with pharmacists, engage in chat, and order chronic medications.
The use of AI, he noted, facilitates real-time patient interaction and effective retrieval of medical data. To mitigate the risk of online medication abuse and misuse, Otuo-Serebour stated that the backend operations of telepharmacy are overseen by certified pharmacists who are well-versed in prescription protocols.
The West Africa Pharma Healthcare Show is an international trade exhibition for the medical and pharmaceutical sectors held in Ghana.
This year’s event gathered manufacturers, wholesalers, dealers, and distributors from the medical, diagnostic, and pharmaceutical industries, along with hospitals and key decision-makers from across West Africa.
