Despite an enhancement in wages of doctors working in government hospitals, strikes are not about to end because of a delay in payment of their wages.
The senior house officers (SHOs) , who are training to became specialists in the different medical fields have laid down their tools with effect from Monday 20,February ,2023 demanding their wages which have not been affected for the last six months.
While addressing journalists in a press conference held on February 18, 2023 at Mulago, the leader of Senior House Officials (SHOs), Dr.Robert Lubega said doctors at Mulago referral hospital, Kirudu and Kawempe have gon 3 months without receiving any coin while their counterparts in Mbarara and Mbale have not received their Wages for the last six months.
“We have not been paid our wages since November, 2022 yet just like other people we have personal needs like paying house rent. School fees and feeding our families but the government treats us is inhuman.” Dr Lubega said.
He adds,” It’s like we are moving one step forward and two steps backwards since the president directed the ministry of finance to enhance our wages to 2,500.000.”
Lubega also said that they have tried to reach out to the concerned office like that of the director general of health sciences and of the acting commissioner of Clinical Services, Dr.Ronnie Batatungire since December 2022 and the permanent secretary of ministry of health but efforts were futile.
The Secretary General of Uganda Medical Association (UMA) Dr. Herbert Luswata said that even today such a situation is still occurring yet the SHOs are doing most of the work in hospitals.
Dr.Luswata also said that if a clear policy on SHOs and intern doctors is not put in place, the strikes will continue to happen and it’s the common people to suffer the consequences.
“ The lives of patients are in danger when the senior doctors are not in hospitals. What surprises us is that this money which is supposed to be paid to doctors was put in the national budget but we wonder where it goes,’’ Dr Luswata wondered.
He adds,“ If you are an intern doctor and there is no one to supervise you, imagine you are going to do surgery then you don’t get a supervisor you instead abandon the exercise and the patient will suffer the consequences.’’
A total of only 692 SHOs who are undergoing a training to attain a master’s degree in medicine in the different government hospitals such that can become specialists in the different medical fields. According to the Ministry of Health Human Resources for the Health Strategic Plan 2020-2030, the vacancy rate foe specialized doctors stands at 70%.
The doctors recommended that government should employ SHOs in public service structures as SMOs because this will ensure payment of fixed salaries rather that allowances ant that government should advertise and recruit Medical Officer Special Grade and Consultants in regional referral hospitals to fill the 70% gap.
Ministry of Finance and Parliament should a gently work on facilitating National Medical Stores with funds to purchase and deliver medical supplies to the different government hospitals so as to enable the smooth running of health service delivery.
They also recommended that that there should be a complete policy for SHOs, Inter-ministerial collaboration between Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health together with other stakeholders like, Uganda Medical Association and the leadership of the SHOs to finalize the SHO policy.
The pool of scholarships should be channeled through the ministry of health such that all doctors can be able to access further training and all donors should pool SHO scholarships via MOH for efficiency and avoid double scholarships for one person.
By George Bukenya