Family of Deceased Charles Amissah Sues Three Hospitals, Medical Staff Over Alleged Negligence

A medical doctor and sister of deceased engineer Charles Henry Amissah has filed a lawsuit against three major health facilities, several healthcare professionals and the Attorney General, accusing them of negligence that allegedly led to her brother’s death following a road accident in Accra.

Dr. Matilda Amissah, acting as administratrix of the estate of Charles Henry Amissah, is seeking GH¢20 million in general damages at the High Court in Accra over the February 2026 incident that reignited concerns about Ghana’s persistent “No Bed Syndrome.”

The suit names the Ghana Police Hospital, Greater Accra Regional Hospital, Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, several doctors and nurses attached to the facilities, and the Attorney General’s Department as defendants.

According to the statement of claim filed before the General Jurisdiction Division of the High Court, Charles Henry Amissah, a 29-year-old Electronic and Automation Engineer with Promasidor Ghana Limited, was involved in a hit-and-run accident on the Kwame Nkrumah Circle Overpass at about 10:30 p.m. on February 6, 2026.

The plaintiff stated that after Amissah failed to return home, family members reported him missing at the Adentan Police Station. Four days later, the family was contacted by officers at the Nima Police Station and informed that an unidentified accident victim had been taken to Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital.

Dr. Amissah told the court that when the family arrived at the hospital mortuary, they allegedly found the body in a decomposing state outside the cold room and infested with maggots.

The writ alleges that the National Ambulance Service initially transported the injured engineer to the Police Hospital after receiving a distress call. However, medical staff at the facility allegedly informed ambulance personnel that there were no available beds.

According to the suit, ambulance personnel pleaded with staff to provide emergency first aid because the victim was bleeding profusely, but no stabilisation was allegedly administered.

The plaintiff further claims that the patient was later transferred to the Greater Accra Regional Hospital at Ridge, where another request for urgent treatment was allegedly declined due to lack of bed space.

Court documents indicate that the ambulance eventually proceeded to Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, where the plaintiff alleges medical personnel again failed to provide immediate care despite appeals from ambulance staff to attend to the patient on the stretcher.

The suit states that Charles Henry Amissah suffered cardiac arrest at about 12:50 a.m. and was later pronounced dead at Korle-Bu.

Dr. Amissah argues that her brother remained alive for more than two hours while being moved between hospitals and could have survived if emergency interventions had been administered promptly.

The statement of claim cites post-mortem findings including deep lacerations to the right upper arm, severe blood loss, fractures and trauma-related complications resulting from exsanguination.

The plaintiff is accusing the hospitals and medical personnel of negligence, including failure to provide emergency triage, failure to stabilise the patient, failure to conduct vital assessments and failure to prioritise urgent care despite the severity of his condition.

She also alleges that the handling of the body after death caused additional emotional trauma to the family, as the state of decomposition prevented the body from being laid in state during funeral rites.

The lawsuit follows findings by a government-appointed committee chaired by Agyeman Badu Akosa, which investigated the circumstances surrounding the death.

The committee reportedly concluded earlier this month that failures by medical personnel at the three hospitals contributed to the engineer’s death and that timely emergency intervention could have saved his life.

Its report cited lapses in emergency response procedures, poor coordination among institutions and failures by clinicians to provide immediate life-saving care despite the patient arriving alive at all three facilities.

The committee also recommended disciplinary action against several healthcare professionals named in the suit and proposed broader reforms to Ghana’s emergency healthcare system.

Dr. Amissah maintains that the actions of the defendants caused severe emotional and financial hardship to the family, particularly as the deceased had become the primary support for their mother following the death of their father in 2019.

The defendants have been given eight days after service of the writ to enter appearance or risk judgment being entered against them in default.