Our Regulator for today is the Allied Health Professionals Council (the “Council”). The Council is governed by the Health Professions Regulatory Bodies Act, 2013 (Act 875) (the “Act”) and it is responsible for training, registering and licencing Professionals in Allied health in Ghana.
The Allied health practitioners that are required to register with the Council are:
● Medical laboratorist (such as Medical Laboratory Technicians and Medical Laboratory Scientists);
● Physiotherapists;
● Medical radiation practitioners (such as Medical Imaging Technologists, Diagnostic Radiographers, Ultra sonographers, Magnetic Imaging Radiographers, Radiation Therapists, Nuclear Medicine Technologists, and Radiological Technicians);
● Dietherapy and Nutritionists;
● Dental health professionals (Dental Surgery Assistants, Dental Therapists, and Dental Hygienists);
● Therapists (Occupational therapists and Speech therapists);
● Prosthetics and Orthotics;
● Medical physicists;
● Health information managers (Bio statistician, Medical Records Officers, Medical Statisticians, and Health Information Administrators);
● Sanitarians; and
● Optometry Practitioners (Optometrist, Optical Technicians, and Optical Dispensing Technician).
The Council is mandated by the Act to register these practitioners and a person cannot practice as an allied health practitioner or allied health care provider unless that person has registered with and obtained the appropriate licence from the Council. The licence is valid for a year and it must be renewed annually. The Council also has the right to enter the premises of Allied health practitioners to ensure that they are complying with the Act.
Failure to register with the Council before commencing practice or to renew a licence is an offence punishable by a term of imprisonment of not more than 2years or a fine of at most GHS 6,000 or both.
It is important to note that all foreign trained allied health practitioners and allied health care providers are also required to register with and obtain a licence from the Council before they can practice in Ghana.
Furthermore, the above health practitioners are also guided by the Public Health Act, 2021 (Act 851) and the Mental Health Act, 2012 (Act 836) in their practice.