Health professionals reposted out of Bawku due to conflict
About 20 health professionals have been posted out of the Bawku Municipality, owing to the security situation in the area, Dr Emmanuel Kofi Dzotsi, the Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) has said.
He said the Regional Health Directorate had received several requests from health staff for postings out of the Bawku Municipality, “We have had several requests for reposing out of Bawku.
“Once we study the security situation and feel that our personnel are not safe, we quickly grant them. But most of them opted to leave the Region, which we are not happy about,” he said.
Dr Dzotsi, however, noted that not all the 20 were posted out of the Region, some were moved to other safer Districts, noting that staff from the area who felt safe to work in the Bawku Municipality and its environs, had been maintained to render services.
“Any staff who feels that they are not safe within the Municipality, we quickly move that staff to a place that he or she feels safe. We are also engaging community leadership to know that the health of their people is paramount, so they should allow us to provide the service.”
The Director said this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Bolgatanga on the side-line of the 2022 half year performance review meeting.
It was on the theme; “The role of quality data in improving service delivery outcomes.”
Dr Dzotsi said after engagements with community elders and leaders on the need to allow health professionals to work in their communities, they understood and allowed health professionals to render services.
“For example, we were able to carry out our Seasonal Malaria Chemo Prevention successfully in the Bawku Municipality,” he said.
He emphasised that “We are neutral people, we are just there to provide service, so if they allow us, we will go and provide the service. We call on the leadership there to smoke the peace pipe so that we can improve the health delivery.”
Mr Stephen Yakubu, the Regional Minister, said the Regional Coordinating Council was worried about the situation in Bawku and its environs, and cautioned that if care was not taken, the disturbance could derail all the gains made over the years.
The Minister, who is the Chairman of the Regional Security Council appealed to the people of the area to use dialogue to resolve their differences and allow public servants who were there for the interest of the poor and marginalised, to work for the progress and development of the Region.
“I equally urge public workers in the area to remain neutral and not meddle in the conflict,” Mr Yakubu admonished.
Source: GNA