Saturday, May 7, 2022.
I have been thinking about some questions for health workers in health institutions in Ghana:
- Are there health worker(s) (medical doctors, nurses, midwives etc) in your institution you would not like to attend to your relatives or friends?
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What are your reasons?
- They are not competent.
- They are not safe.
- They are not friendly.
- They extort money from patients.
- Other.
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Have you reported this/these health worker(s) to the authorities of your institution so that they are taken out of the system?
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If your answer is no, it means when your relative or friend is coming to your institution, you will ‘go behind the scene’ and make sure that this/these health worker(s) does/do not see them?
But others who cannot manipulate the system should go through the normal system and are likely to be seen by a ‘misfit’ in your eyes?
As long as we don’t make systems work, as long as those in authority in our health institutions have ‘protocols’ to pick the best for themselves, the general public is in danger.
As we ask our President, Speaker of Parliament, ministers, parliamentarians and others to patronise local/public services and not to travel outside for healthcare, we should also hold those in authority in our public health institutions accountable. Hospital administrators, medical superintendents, nurse managers, senior medical doctors, pharmacists, nurses midwives etc must be made to appreciate this. As long as they use ‘protocols’ to get the best for themselves, their friends and relatives, the system is not safe for the general public. They themselves are also not safe the day they may be rushed in as emergencies and nobody recognises them. Finally, the general public will never trust our institutions and will try to get to the institutions through an ‘influential person’ so that they also avoid being seen by ‘misfits’.
Systems must work!
