The University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC) plans to begin offering hair transplants as a form of plastic surgery for individuals experiencing baldness by the end of the year. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a hair transplant is a surgical procedure in which hair is relocated from one area of the body (the donor area, typically the back or sides of the scalp) to a bald or thinning area (the recipient area).
Dr. Baffoe Gyan, the Director of Medical Affairs at UGMC, stated that the center is in the final stages of preparing to introduce this innovative service to the public after successfully piloting it. In an interview with Graphic Online’s Timothy Ngnenbe last Friday, he mentioned that this initiative is part of UGMC’s vision to become a world-class facility for comprehensive medical solutions.
The surgeon leading the hair transplant program received training in New York and has returned to implement the technique in Ghana, reporting positive results. “The trial was conducted on one of our own doctors, who now has significantly healthier hair,” Dr. Gyan noted. He added that before officially launching the service, it is essential to ensure there are enough qualified doctors available to meet potential demand.
The WHO points out that baldness or hair loss can result from various factors, including genetics, hormonal changes, medical conditions, stress, and certain medications.
The world body further states that the most common type of baldness, androgenetic alopecia (also known as male or female pattern baldness), is largely hereditary and related to ageing and hormones. Dr Gyan said a team of medical staff was being built and groomed to get the required expertise for a full rollout of the service.
He added that the team of young medical staff at the UGMC, who were being groomed for the hair transplant, were ambitious and poised to deliver when the needed support was provided.
Quaternary status
He said the UGMC’s ultimate goal was to become a quaternary hospital – a facility that provides the most specialised and advanced medical care, often considered an extension of tertiary care. For us to get there, we need to do things that are commonly not done. We are the only institution that runs the three arms of medical care, and if Ghana wants a hospital that will stand the test of time, let us pay attention to UGMC,” he said. He said it was in that respect that the centre had started undertaking trailblazing medical solutions that were not commonly done in other hospitals.
“We did Catheter ablation for some patients two weeks ago; a month ago, we did cases of hole-in-heart; and just today (July 25), we have done laparoscopic gastric sleeve surgery. And from what we know, this is the first of such surgery in Ghana,” he said.
Other innovations
Dr Baffoe said other innovations explored by the UGMC included bone marrow transplant, “and we are doing kidney transplant already.” “We have done about eight kidney transplants, but we are not making too much noise about it yet,” he revealed.
Human resource
He encouraged Ghanaians abroad with expertise in innovative medical or clinical solutions to make themselves available and help build on local capacity to serve people. “It is our goal that by 2027, we should be able to do almost everything medically possible, so we need all experts, home and abroad, to be part of this journey,” he said.
By: Timothy Ngnenbe
