The government’s commitment to resolving a long-standing crisis in Ghana’s healthcare workforce is demonstrated by the Ministry of Finance’s financial clearance for the hiring of almost 8,000 health workers.
Frederick Mensah-Acheampong, the Ministry of Health’s Director of Human Resources, announced the clearance during a news conference in Accra, acknowledging the extent of the distress the backlog of unemployed health workers has caused throughout the industry.
“We have received financial clearance to recruit about 8,000 health professionals from the Ministry of Finance. The Ministry acknowledges the anxiety and interest these recruitment exercises have generated, particularly given the backlog of about 105,000 unemployed health professionals, some of whom have been awaiting recruitment since 2018 and 2019,” he stated.
The clearance comes amid a deteriorating labour crisis, with over 105,000 qualified but unemployed health workers nationwide, many of whom have been in limbo for years despite having the qualifications to work in Ghana’s public health system.
The first round of hiring under the clearance is already in progress. In addition to 771 out of 900 allied health professionals, 235 out of 250 pharmacy professionals, and 300 physician assistants, 6,245 nurses and midwives have been successfully hired out of 6,500 open positions thus far. This indicates a conscious attempt to address staffing shortages across several health disciplines at once.
According to Mr. Mensah-Acheampong, the government’s Primary Healthcare policy, which places a high priority on community-based services, preventive care, and bolstering healthcare delivery in underserved areas, serves as the basis for the recruitment process.
The Human Resources Director promised that a mop-up exercise will be carried out in the upcoming weeks to absorb qualified applicants who were unable to finish the procedure, despite the fact that there are still about 87 nursing positions empty in the Northern districts.
Source: newsthemegh.com