A Ghanaian national who faced severe illness during the Covid-19 pandemic has been granted the right to stay in the United Kingdom after a tribunal found that returning to Ghana would cause him significant mental health suffering.

Winfred Kwabla Dogbey, 52, was hospitalized in May 2020 with a serious case of Covid-19 that led to multiple organ failure and a prolonged recovery. He has since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), major depressive disorder (MDD), and what his doctor described as "post Covid-19 syndrome," according to the Daily Mail.

Dogbey arrived in the UK on a visa in April 2013. He later applied for asylum in June 2016, but that claim was denied. He then pursued multiple further submissions before his case was ultimately rejected by the Home Office in December 2023.

The Immigration and Asylum Chamber's Upper Tribunal, however, ruled in his favor after reviewing medical evidence and expert testimony. The panel, made up of Judge Khan and Deputy Judge Gill, concluded that Dogbey is “a seriously ill person” and would be at risk of a “serious, rapid and irreversible decline in his state of health” if sent back to Ghana.

Dogbey is currently enrolled in a rehabilitation program in the UK specifically for individuals recovering from the long-term effects of Covid-19. He continues to receive physiotherapy and has been referred for neurology evaluations and diagnostic scans.

His legal team argued that mental health care in Ghana is severely lacking, especially for individuals with trauma-related conditions. One expert stated that Dogbey would face an “intense and overwhelming” level of suffering if returned, which would be “intolerable.” The tribunal accepted the argument that Ghana does not offer the care he needs and that mental health services in the country are both unregulated and often harmful.

The tribunal cited multiple concerns, including that only 0.6% of Ghanaians with major depressive disorder receive treatment and that even those who do often receive “poor quality of care.”

A report presented to the panel claimed patients in Ghana are sometimes subjected to abuse in both psychiatric hospitals and prayer camps, including being “sedated and beaten” or given electroconvulsive therapy without anesthesia.

The judgement added: "Furthermore, post Covid treatment in Ghana is 'practically non-existent.'" It was also revealed that Ghana has “only one private psychologist trained in trauma focused therapy,” and that psychological services are not regulated or covered under the healthcare system.

Though Home Office lawyers maintained that treatment was available in Ghana, the tribunal noted the department “conceded” that available psychiatric care was “insufficient.”

Dogbey’s case was ultimately upheld under Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects individuals from inhumane or degrading treatment. Judge Gill wrote: “Given the severe and systemic problems identified in the provision of mental health services, and with no evidence before us to suggest that the position is likely to change, we determine that mental health treatment is not reasonably likely to be accessible or become available to Mr Dogbey for his mental health conditions.”