Ghana

Poor water, sanitation, and hygiene practices contribute to the spread of infections and negative health outcomes in communities and health care settings. Globally, roughly 3.85 billion people use health facilities that lack basic hand hygiene services, while 1.7 billion people access health facilities that lack basic water services. Achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6)—ensuring access to water and sanitation for all—demands innovative and strategic solutions.One such solution is the Aqua Research STREAM™ Disinfectant Generator (STREAM). The STREAM is an onsite chlorine generator that uses common salt and water to generate liquid chlorine that meets global standards for intermediate–level disinfection of surfaces in health care settings and can be used for treating drinking water.With funding from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation and in collaboration with ministries of health, this learning brief series provides real–world examples and lessons learned from implementing the STREAM in three countries: Ghana, Uganda, and Ethiopia.It describes how PATH, in collaboration with ministries of health, is using the SDG 6 Global Accelerator Framework to introduce and scale up the STREAM on a national level.

In January 2024, PATH and Ghana Health Services (GHS), with support from the Bainum Family Foundation, entered into a partnership to develop and test strategies to support early childhood development centers in providing better health and nutrition services. This brief details the background, activities, initial results, and next steps.

The Digital Innovation in Pandemic Control (DIPC) project (2022–2025)—a partnership between Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and Digital Square at PATH—has worked closely with the Ghana Health Service (GHS) to strengthen Ghana’s digital immunization ecosystem. Recognizing the challenges of fragmented, non-interoperable systems, the DIPC project team and GHS conducted a comprehensive mapping of digital tools supporting immunization, identifying key gaps and priorities for national scale-up.DIPC project pillars in Ghana:Enhancing the DHIS2 E-Tracker’s Child Health Module: The project, led by GHS, Digital Square at PATH, and HISP-Ghana, upgraded the Child Health Module to serve as Ghana’s national electronic immunization registry for all children under five. New features include tracking of routine vaccinations and integrated child growth monitoring alongside immunization workflows to support integrated child health, improved vaccine stock management, and adverse event reporting. A phased rollout led by GHS is underway across eight regions, targeting 3,700 facilities and an estimated 300,000 clients.Building health worker capacity: The DIPC project facilitated national, regional, and facility-level training to ensure effective use of the enhanced E-Tracker Child Health Module. Over 1,400 health workers—including Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) staff, regional and district officers, and nurses—have been trained, with a strong emphasis on sustainability and local ownership.Supporting interoperability: The project also developed detailed requirements for an interoperability layer (IOL) that can be used by GHS to evaluate candidate software solutions, laying the groundwork for seamless data exchange between digital health systems. This work aligns with Ghana’s digital health strategy and supports more efficient, data-driven immunization services.Advancing technical readiness for TB data verification: In 2025, the DIPC project team launched a proof of concept to show how Ghana could securely share tuberculosis (TB) health data using international standards. GHS, Digital Square at PATH, and HISP-Ghana partnered to use Ghana’s DHIS2 E-Tracker system to create a digital summary of a patient’s TB information. This digital summary, called an International Patient Summary (IPS), is linked to a QR code. The DIPC project team tested this innovation in a secure demo environment to mimic real-world conditions. This innovation showcases how health workers will be able to scan the QR code and access the patient’s TB information even when the patient moves to different health facilities, thereby providing more seamless TB care. Digital Square at PATH also helped Ghana begin the process of joining the WHO’s Global Digital Health Certification Network (GDHCN), which will allow the country to verify and share health data across borders.Key results to date:Facilities using new/enhanced solutions: 3 (with phased expansion ongoing)Registered users: 50Registered clients: 3,660Vaccinations recorded: 22,330Training sessions held: 49, with 1,487 people trained (483 women, 704 men)Demonstrated improvements: The enhanced CHM has reduced manual data entry errors, improved record-keeping, and enabled real-time tracking of immunization schedules.Broader impact:The DIPC project’s work in Ghana is setting a model for sustainable, interoperable digital health systems that can adapt to evolving health needs and future pandemics. The addition of TB-specific IPS capabilities positions Ghana as a technical leader in global health data exchange and verification. By aligning with WHO standards and engaging partners such as GHS, HISP-Ghana, and GIZ, the project ensures long-term scalability and sets the stage for secure cross-border data sharing. The collaborative, standards-based approach strengthens Ghana’s digital health infrastructure and empowers health workers and patients alike to benefit from more efficient, secure, and inclusive care delivery.

Collaboration between PATH and the Ghana Health Service Institutional Care Division scales-up use of the STREAM™ Disinfectant Generator in health facilities.

The Digital Innovation in Pandemic Control (DIPC) project, launched in November 2022, is a collaborative initiative led by GIZ and Digital Square at PATH to strengthen immunization systems in Ghana, Malawi, and Tanzania. In response to the fragmentation and lack of interoperability exposed during the COVID‑19 pandemic, DIPC works closely with country health ministries to select, localize, and implement digital public health tools—such as Electronic Immunization Registries and WHO SMART-based Digital Adaptation Kits—to build scalable, interoperable, and locally sustainable immunization platforms. Through end-to-end ecosystem mapping, system enhancement, and capacity building, the project aims to create resilient, digitally enabled immunization workflows that can support both routine vaccination and future pandemic preparedness across participating countries by 2025.

PATH’s HPV Vaccine Safety, Immunogenicity, and Health Economics (HPV SIHE) project is coming to a close after five years—and it leaves a long list of successes behind.

Results from a Phase 3 clinical study of Innovax’s WHO prequalified vaccine can help expand access globally and give countries another option for affordable, sustainable HPV vaccine.

When countries consider introducing new vaccines, immunization program cost and affordability are key questions. Data are limited on what vaccinating pregnant populations costs. To help fill this gap, PATH conducted prospective studies in collaboration with ministries of health and other partners to understand cost of delivery and introduction implications for new vaccines given in pregnancy in Bangladesh, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, and Nepal. The estimates will help inform policy decisions in low- and middle-income countries where maternal immunization-preventable diseases often hit hardest.Find here links to the peer-reviewed journal articles and fact sheets summarizing the research from Kenya, Ghana, and Mozambique. Publication of the Bangladesh and Nepal results is forthcoming. (Materials available in English and, as applicable, in Portuguese.)

PATH is sponsoring a Phase 3 clinical study is to generate immunogenicity data for one dose of Innovax 9vHPV vaccine compared to a one dose of GARDASIL 9, with the prospect of providing evidence for another nine-valent vaccine product option for single-dose vaccination.

Integrated antenatal care eLearning courseTo address the critical challenges of neonatal and maternal mortality, Ghana Health Service and PATH expanded infectious disease screening and treatment among pregnant women through the Integrated Antenatal Care project (2022‒2024).One key output of this project is an eLearning course designed to build health care providers’ capacity to improve the overall quality of care, including diagnosis, prevention, and management of maternal infections in pregnant women during antenatal care visits. It also fosters demand creation for intervention and services available in health facilities. The course’s overall goal is to contribute to the reduction of morbidity and mortality attributable to infections in newborns by improving the diagnosis and management of maternal infections during antenatal care.The course includes the following modules:1. Infection prevention and control2. Point of care and other diagnostics3. Clinical features and management of selected infections in pregnant women4. Antimicrobial resistance and stewardship5. Standard operating procedures for infection control and management during antenatal careThe document linked below provides a course overview. For more information, please contact Gideon Sarpong Nyamekye.