IT IS an open secret that each year, many health professionals refuse posting to the deprived parts of the country, especially the three northern regions.
Though some may have genuine concerns, a lot of these health professionals simply do not want to work in areas outside Accra and other urban towns.
It is not surprising, therefore, that even some of those who accept posting to northern Ghana, refuse to move to the rural areas but prefer to remain in Tamale, Yendi, Walewale, Bolga, Wa and other big towns.
According to the Northern Regional Health Directorate, as at the beginning of 2010, only three out of 13 pharmacists who were posted to the Northern Region had reported for duty.
It added that not even one of the 15 doctors who were also posted to the region had confirmed their acceptance of the posting.
The Northern Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Akwasi Twumasi, was compelled to make a passionate appeal during the annual review to the government to take drastic measures to reverse this trend as it was impeding the delivery of healthcare in the region.
He said the region had only 15 doctors and 210 midwives, who were currently working in the regional and district health facilities in the region.
One wonders, therefore, how maternal and child mortality could be reduced if health professionals, such as midwives and medical specialists are unavailable to render very essential services to women.
In 2007, 155 women in the region lose their lives during labour and this figure dropped to 91 in 2008.
In 2009, however, the number of maternal deaths began to increase again from 91 to 96 and as things stand now, one cannot tell what the situation would be by the end of 2010.
It is for this reason that the Central Gonja District Assembly in the Northern Region is being commended for instituting a special sponsorship scheme to support the training of medical doctors and medical assistants.
Students who are benefiting from this scholarship have been made to sign a bond with the assembly that requires them under the law to serve the district for some years when they graduate from the medical school.
Currently, six medical students, one in Ukraine and the rest in Ghana, are benefiting from the scheme. Whilst two of the six students are training to be doctors, the others are medical assistant trainees.
This initiative by the assembly will ultimately guarantee the availability of doctors in the area in future if the bonds are enforced.
The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Central Gonja, Mr Issifu Salifu Be-Awuribe, told the Daily Graphic at the sidelines of an assembly meeting that the assembly was spending a total of GH¢80,000 on the sponsorship package for all beneficiary students.
He said about GH¢15,000 had been allocated to support the medical students, whilst the rest of the funds were being used to sponsor other tertiary students, including teachers, nurses and some university and polytechnic students.
The DCE stated that the decision to sponsor medical students was born out of the realisation that medical doctors were scarce in the region.
He said the assembly was making similar efforts towards providing the requisite health facilities, notably a hospital, clinics and Community Health Planning Services (CHPS) zones in various communities.
Commenting on the sponsorship for medical students, the Northern Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Akwasi Twumasi, described the move as appropriate.
He, however, stated that the problem was not about the sponsorship, but how to ensure that those beneficiaries stayed back to serve in the district upon completion of their training.
“The Bole District Assembly has sponsored a medical student before, but after completion, he never went there to serve,” he lamented.
Dr Twumasi said the bonds signed by those beneficiaries must be effective in order to guarantee the return of the trainees after graduation.
“Several stakeholders must be involved in the signing of the bonds, including parents of beneficiaries and opinion leaders so that in case of default, all these people would have to be made to pay,” he stressed.
The regional health service director described the failure of some graduates to serve in the districts that sponsored their training as very regrettable and shameful.
“These graduates have a moral obligation to serve their respective districts even if they are not bonded by legal instruments,” Dr Twumasi stated.
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