Stakeholders in the health sector have been urged to help develop the potential of traditional medicine as a reliable source of health care in the country.

Mr. S.Osafo –Mensah, a Senior Research Scientist who made the call, said the widespread and growing use of traditional medicine had created public health challenges in terms of policy, safety, efficiency and quality access.

He said this when speaking at the maiden graduation ceremony of the College Of Integrated Healthcare at Obuasi during which 20 students who had acquired the requisite knowledge and skills in both the orthodox and traditional health cares passed out.

Mr. Osafo-Mensah said scientific evidence had begun to emerge suggesting that some traditional medicine approaches and products could be beneficial for treating illness and promoting health when used appropriately.

He expressed happiness that the country’s successive governments had recognized the importance of herbal medicine in health care delivery, and asked the Ministry of Health to help improve quality traditional medicine health care through coordinated research and development to increase knowledge on traditional medicine practices and interventions.

Torgbuiga Yaka IV, the Registrar of Traditional Medicine Practice Council, assured the graduates that the governments had their safety concerns at heart.

He said regulation is the key to guarantee public health and safety despite the fact that public confidence in traditional medicine practitioners have been confirmed.

The chairman of the Board of the College, Nana Asirifi Asare II said strike actions and other agitations leading to deaths at the country’s health facilities was worrying.

He said “nobody is saying that as health care providers they should not agitate for good remuneration but to do so at the expense of human lives needs critical attention and other alternatives”.

Mr. Jacob Kwasi Anakpor, the principal of the College appealed to the government to support the college in its bid to secure accreditation for its intended diploma programmes.