The President of the Graduate Students’ Association at the University of Ghana (GRASAG-UG), Bright Amansiah Twerefour, who is also a trained radiographer, has voiced strong opposition to the mass dental X-ray screening of students, raising concerns about potential health risks.
His comments come in the wake of a press statement from the Graduate Students’ Association of Ghana (Legon), which called for an immediate halt to compulsory dental X-rays and emphasized the need to adhere strictly to radiation protection protocols.
While acknowledging the importance of health screenings for early disease detection, the association stressed that subjecting healthy, asymptomatic individuals to ionizing radiation is medically unethical and unjustifiable.
Speaking on Campus Exclusive on May 20, 2025, Mr. Twerefour backed his argument with scientific evidence from a joint publication by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the American Dental Association (ADA) titled Dental Radiographic Examinations: Recommendations for Patient Selection and Limiting Radiation Exposure.
“Our concern lies in the blanket approach of subjecting all students to dental X-rays, The FDA-ADA guidelines emphasize that radiographic examinations should be based on individual needs, not administered en masse.”
Mr. Twerefour called on university authorities to ensure that radiation is used judiciously, only when medically necessary, and not simply to fulfill administrative requirements.
“While public health efforts are important, the individual health of students must also be safeguarded,” he said. “Recognizing the potential harm of radiation, we urge management to adopt a need-based approach rather than using such screenings for convenience.”
He also urged university policymakers to prioritize ethical standards and student safety in all health-related interventions.
–
Story by: Gabriel Opoku | univers.ug.edu.gh
Edited by: Wahab Abdul Razak
