Ernest Asiedu

Dr. Ernest Konadu Asiedu

Coordinator, Community and Institutional Care, National Catholic Health Service.

Dr. Ernest Konadu Asiedu, a Medical and Dental Council certified registered medical practitioner and a  trained Improvement Advisor has been the Coordinator, Community and Institutional Care at the Health Directorate of the National Catholic Health Service since December 2011. In this role he leads the unit to support the provision of comprehensive and quality healthcare that is safe in the most effective and efficient way to meet patient and population expectations in the National Catholic Health Service.

 He had a primary responsibility in the NCHS hospital collaborative (Wave 3), aimed at reducing under five mortality in the southern part of Ghana using Quality Improvement Concepts and Methodology. Now with the National scale up (Wave 4), he facilitates the Project Fives Alives! Wave 4  teams in Ghana Health Service, Christian Health Association of Ghana Hospitals, Some private hospital and Korle Bu Teaching Hospital to engage the QI teams in testing and implementing change ideas in improving processes and outcomes in Child Health. He also coordinates the Global Mental Health work in in seven selected sites within the NCHS and GHS using QI to improve the quality of lives of persons diagnosed to have epilepsy and maternal depression.

Prior to joining the Health Directorate, Dr. Asiedu worked as the Deputy Medical Director, Clinical Lead in Pediatrics and General Practice for five years at the St. Francis Xavier Hospital (SFXH), Assin Foso. He was also a member of the Central Regional Peer Review Clinical Team and Maternal Mortality Audit, representing the SFXH. Dr. Asiedu is again one of the National Facilitators for the Clinical management of Severe Acute Malnutrition/ Community Management of Acute Malnutrition-(CMAM) since 2010. He was the Quality Improvement (QI) team leader for SFXH under Project Fives Alive!’s Wave 3 Collaborative Network before joining the Directorate.

Dr. Asiedu earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Human Biology in 2002 at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology , and  Medical degree in 2005 also at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. His thesis on in Knowledge of SCD in adolescents in Tepa District. While in medical training he had internship in Harldtawald Klinik in Monchengladbach, Germany(now subsumed by Elizabeth Krankenhaus) where he studied pulmonology associated occupational health, and management of sleep disorders. Further to this he did his two year housemanship at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in General Practice. Dr. Asiedu further has a post graduate certificate and diploma in Health Administration and Management, and Occupational Safety Health and Environmental Management respectively from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA).  He also obtained a certificate as an Improvement Advisor from Institute of Healthcare Improvement, USA in 2010 , Facilitation Skills from MDF in Jan. 2012 and a Virtual Leadership Development Program, MSH done in 2012.

He is currently pursuing a two- year MPhil program in Epidemiology and Disease Control at the School of Public Health, University on Ghana.

Together with Ghana Health Service, he co-authored Chapter 4 as well as providing technical support in the writing of the Quality and Patient Safety in Health Care Book. He has made several poster presentations in forums  both locally and internationally. My work in Severe Acute Malnutrition and Child health have gained recognition at the IHI/BMJ International Forums both in the USA and Europe( France and UK) since 2011. He also attended a Patient Safety meeting/training  in Cicinnati Children’s Hospital, Ohio, USA in December, 2011. Currently a member of International Society of Quality in Healthcare( ISQua), he attended the 1st Regional  ISQua meeting in February,2013 where he made an oral presentation in  Accra, Ghana and the  30th International conference in Edinburgh  October,2013. As  a member of the Global Community of Mental Health Innovators, he attended the Global Mental Health/Grand Challenges Canada/National Institute of Mental Health Conference in Maryland, USA in June , 2014 where he made a Poster presentation.  He is also a member of Ghana Medical Association since 2005. As a trained Improvement Advisor, he facilitates, mentors and coaches Quality Improvement teams in  hospitals in Ghana, in Greater Accra, Volta, Eastern and Central Regions in close collaboration with Ghana Health Service using Quality Improvement methodologies to improve health outcomes and processes in Maternal and Child health.  He also oversee a number of Improvement Collaborative in Patient Safety within the National Catholic Health Service in :

Improving Medication Safety using the Drug and Therapeutic Committee
Improving Surgical Safety using the WHO safe surgery and surgical sit infection checklists
Improving Maternal and Newborn care using the WHO Safe Childbirth Checklist
Reducing Stigma and Discrimination among health workers in Catholic Health facilities
Improving natural Family Planning Services in Catholic Health facilities
Improving the quality of life of Person living with Diabetes and other co-morbid conditions
Improving the quality of life of persons diagnosed with Epilepsy and Maternal Depression

Dr. Asiedu’s interest is in Patient Safety, Engaging and Empowering Patient and Family for Quality and Safety, and Patient Centered Care. He loves taking care of Children. He enjoys doing community  work and engagement for their intervention in health and environmental issues. Currently I’m the interim chairman of Community 4 Ownership Association ( Narh Bita Area)  working to improve the safety and Sanitation of the community

His hobbies are teaching, travelling, tourism, swimming and tennis.