ABSTRACT
As Table 3.3 indicates, this study is inconclusive about the relationship between governance and performance of public district hospitals.
This study, though preliminary and inconclusive, corroborates the view that accountability is rare in most public health systems worldwide (Lewis and Petterson 2009). The findings suggest that public district hospitals in Ghana consider governing boards to be optional. Differences in the Ghana Health Service and Teaching Hospitals Act of 1996, which is silent on governance of district hospitals, and the Hospital Administration Act of 1988, which establishes management committees to govern public district hospitals, could explain the observed variation in governance practices. The ambiguous situation created leaves public district hospitals without effective governing boards and with gaps in accountability systems.
