By Francis Kobena Tandoh
Thirty-five-year-old mother of two Elsie Kwarteng, whose 12-year-old son had been rushed to the Ashaiman polyclinic, near the eastern port city of Tema, over a scorpion bite Tuesday, had to be turned away because of a strike action by nurses and midwives throughout Ghana.
A visibly worried mother who could not stand the groaning and moaning by her son expressed her frustration over the industrial action by the nurses.
Elsie says the situation could be dire for the country if the problem is not resolved by the government and the striking nurses as early as possible.
“This is bad….look at my son in pain; we cannot continue this way as a country. This could get worse if the matter is not resolved early,” she told Xinhua.
Other patients who had turned up at the facility to seek healthcare had no alternative than to leave for private ones around where they would be charged higher fees.
Peter Anku, 53-year-old mechanic who had a minor motor accident and who had also visited the Ashaiman Polyclinic, observed that even though he had heard of the strike by the nurses, he never anticipated it to be that serious.
“I came here because this health facility is for the government, and I will pay little for my medical condition; however, upon getting here, I’ve realized the situation is serious. The nurses are not around. I will appeal to the government to meet their leadership to resolve the matter,” said Anku.
The industrial action by the nurses and midwives, according to reports monitored, is across all public health institutions across the West African country.
At least some 128,000 Ghanaian nurses and midwives have withdrawn their services in all public health across the West African country to protest poor conditions of service.
The nurses and midwives are protesting over the Ghanaian government’s failure to implement their 2024 collective bargaining agreement aimed at improving their working conditions.
The country’s health minister, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, had appealed to the striking nurses to suspend their industrial action and return to the negotiating table to resolve their differences.
The minister acknowledged the significance of the nurses’ concerns but stressed the need to prioritize patients’ well-being.
“I will continue to appeal to them that in these matters, what we have to do is to put patients first. In my humble opinion, I do not think that a strike is what will resolve the issue at the end of the day. No matter what, at the end of the day, we need to sit around the table to resolve the matter. I am still calling them. Let us sit around the table and find a lasting solution to this matter,” said Akandoh.
Despite the appeal, the nurses and midwives insist that the strike will continue until their demands are fully met.
The nurses and midwives in Ghana commenced a partial strike last week and escalated it on Monday. Enditem
Source: Ghana Eye Report
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