|
Health Ministry launches policy
document
Agona Swedru (C/R), Dec. 14, Ghanadot/GNA- Though Africa has
11 per cent of the world's population and carries 24 per
cent of global disease, the continent has only 1.3 per cent
of health workers and less than 1 per cent of the world's
financial resources for health.
The figure presented a shortage of over 800,000 health
professionals, and this is hampering the attainment of the
Millennium Development Goals on health, Mr Abraham
Dwomoh-Odoom, a deputy Minister of Health said on Friday.
The deputy Minister made this known at the launch of the
Second Human Resource Policies and Plans for health (2007 to
2011) and the Ghana Health Workforce Observatory at Agona
Swedru in the Central Region.
The 85-page policy document designed by the Ministry of
Health, World Health Organisation and Quality Health
Partners is aimed at improving and sustaining human resource
in the health sector to meet the health needs of all.
The observatory is a co-operative network initiative by
countries and health partners being promoted by the World
Health Organisation to produce information, knowledge and
share expertise necessary to improve human resource and
policy decisions.
Mr. Dwomoh-Odoom said the document had come to find
solutions to the brain drain and help strategise policies
and goals that would ensure retention and improvement in the
health workforce.
According to him, the absence of reliable data on health
workers as a result of increase in migration had contributed
to poor monitoring, planning, management and other efforts
to improve human resource health policies.
He expressed optimism that the workforce observatory would
help surmount daunting challenges confronting the sector.
Ghana, he said, was the first in Africa to have a website
for its observatory among its counterparts, Ethiopia, Uganda
and Zambia, saying, "this effort is
very commendable".
The deputy Minister urged stakeholders to fully support
initiatives to sustain the workforce.
Dr. Aaron Ofei, Central Regional Director of Health
Services, Ghana Health Service said the five year sector
policy guideline would concentrate on a different
orientation through training, retention of workers, and
other programmes that would help to attain the MDGs on
health and the middle income status.
He also expressed concern on low productivity in the sector,
despite government efforts to improve their conditions of
service, saying "we would also ensure that workers work
according to what they earn".
Dr. Yaw Antwi-Bosiako, Director, Human Resource for Health
Directorate, MOH, said the document would bring on board
other professionals such as the Red Cross Society and the
ambulance services whose work falls under health in order
for them to contribute effectively to health delivery.
GNA
|
