The strike which started on Monday, January 24, 2022
Medical Officers at West Gonja Hospital in Damongo, the Savannah Region, have embarked on a strike withholding all medical services except three (3) emergency areas which include Medical, Pediatric, and Obstetric.
The strike which started on Monday, January 24, 2022, has seen Doctors referring Patients outside the three emergency areas listed to seek healthcare elsewhere.
According to the Medical Officers, they feel unsafe practicing the tenets of medicine in an unhealthy and unsafe environment, hence their decision to embark on the strike withholding their services.
A letter dated Friday, January 21, 2022, captioned, “Concerns of Medical Officers” and addressed to the Health Director of Damongo Diocese, Mr. Ngmenbon Aiden revealed some challenges they (medical officers) say are encountering since the resignations of the Medical Director and Clinical Coordinator of the Hospital which according to them, create an unhealthy environment for work.
Medical officers who have signed the letter include Mr. Felix Kuubetesob, Mr. Kwesi Obeng Mensah, Mr. Danbeck Powell, and Mr. Josebert Ayambire on behalf of their Colleagues.
The letter is copied to four (4) Departments and individuals including the Bishop, Catholic Diocese of Damongo, the Administration, Nurse Manager, and Staff of West Gonja Hospital.
In the letter, the Doctors also expressed disappointment for not being directly engaged by authorities since the resignations of the two Medical Specialists coupled with the slow progress in solving the current impasse.
At the Open Patients (OPD) Department of the Damomgo Catholic hospital, Patients were seen helpless on chairs and benches with no Medical officers at the various consulting rooms.
Despite its early days yet, the strike is biting hard already with serious impact.
The West Gonja Municipal Hospital is the major referral center for all the clinics, CHIPS compounds among health centers in the region.