By Aggrey Baba
In Uganda, patients have for years lined up in endless queues, sometimes waiting the whole day to see one tired doctor or nurse. However, the government has announced that 2,000 new health workers will be recruited to ease the burden in government hospitals.
The recruitment includes specialists, consultants, nurses, midwives, allied health workers, and even support staff such as drivers and accountants. These workers will be deployed both as new staff and as replacements for those who have retired, been promoted, or died.
As the New Vision reports, some of the biggest hospitals will benefit most, with Mulago Hospital getting 170 new staff plus 39 replacements. Butabika Mental Hospital will receive 60 workers, while Kiruddu Hospital gets 119. In eastern Uganda, Jinja Hospital will get 111 staff, Mbale 55, and Soroti 70.
In the north, Arua Hospital will get 46, Yumbe 119, and Lira 74. In central Uganda, Mubende Hospital is set to receive 87 workers, Masaka 37, and Kayunga 57, while in the west, Fort Portal Hospital will get 56 new staff plus 11 replacements, Mbarara 20, Kabale 64, and Hoima 18.
This is like fresh rain on dry ground. In many hospitals, one health worker has been carrying the weight of dozens of patients, forced to choose between emergencies and routine care.
Officialsfrom the Ministry of Health admit that while the need is great, the money to pay these workers is not always available. Also, some of the new positions created in the revised staffing structure don’t yet have clear job descriptions, which could delay the recruitment.
To bridge gaps among experts, the government also plans to extend the retirement age for specialists from 60 to 70 years, saying these senior doctors are like seasoned generals who cannot be left behind while the war against disease rages on.
Still, more will be needed. Under the new health facility structure, Uganda’s 222 health center IVs will each have five doctors (up from two), requiring 666 new doctors. The 1,500 health center IIIs will each have two doctors, requiring about 3,000 more doctors nationwide, showing that the 2,000 recruits are only the beginning, a patch on a roof that still leaks when the rain comes. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
