It has emerged that most of the health workers, particularly nurses who are posted to the Elubo Government Hospital in the Jomoro Municipality of the Western Region, refuse to accept the postings.
Zachariah Musah, the Medical Superintendent of the hospital, who disclosed this, expressed worry about the situation.
He said the challenge, coupled with inadequate accommodation for health personnel, is hindering the hospital’s ability to provide essential care to the people of Elubo and its environs.
The 65-bed facility with state-of-the-art equipment which was opened in 2023, is currently grappling with severe shortage of staff.
DAILY GUIDE gathered that even though the health facility has the capacity to absorb 120 health workers, only 45 are currently available.
Interacting with the Western Regional Minister, Joseph Nelson, the Medical Superintendent stated, “We have two key obstacles – the reluctance of some nurses to accept postings to the facility and lack of accommodation for staff.”
He said, “We recently opened the theatre, and most of the functional units have machines that are state-of-the-art, but they remain closed because we do not have trained personnel to use them.”
For his part, the Regional Minister, Mr. Nelson, could not fathom why nurses posted to the facility decline the postings.
“It beats my mind why when some nurses and health workers are transferred or posted to a facility, they can simply refuse and still remain on the payroll,” he stated.
He pointed out that while some health facilities are overstaffed, others are facing shortages.
He pledged his commitment to finding solutions to the hospital’s two key challenges, but called on those responsible for managing the situation to take action.
“As the government seeks long-term solutions to the staffing crisis, it is essential to transform this multi-million-cedi investment into a fully operational healthcare hub,” he added.
He appealed to the health workers to focus more on patients’ care, and proposed for the establishment of an office dedicated to safeguarding patient interests.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi