Senior doctors strike enters day four
Officials from Ministry of Health following a meeting with Senior House Officers in Kampala on Tuesday. Photo | Courtesy | Uganda Medical Association
What you need to know:
- The Health ministry has, however, maintained that the SHOs should work as they look for money to pay them.
- Dr Atwine has previously told this reporter that they have been engaging the SHOs.
A meeting held Tuesday between Health ministry officials and striking doctors failed to resolve the contention over payment of arrears, the leader of the senior medics said on Wednesday.
Dr Robert Lubega, the head of Senior House Officers (qualified doctors undergoing specialised training at graduate level while serving in hospitals), said they will carry on with the strike, which is crippling care in public facilities. He said the strike action has been forced by the ministry’s failure to pay their allowances over the past four to six months.
“We held a closed-door meeting with the permanent secretary of the Health ministry, Dr Diana Atwine; Director General Health Services Dr Henry Mwebesa; a team of Senior House Officers; Uganda Medical Association leadership and State House representatives,” Dr Lubega said.
Standoff
“We insisted that we can’t move forward unless there is commitment to the rightful payments of both junior and senior house officers. Matters were referred to the next cabinet meeting,” he said.
The strike enters its fourth day today, having kicked off on Labour Day, Monday.
About 70 percent of workload in public facilities is carried out by SHOs and medical interns partly because of few doctors employed by the government, the Uganda Medical Association said. All SHOs are supposed to earn a Shs2.5 million salary, according to a 2021 pay enhancement directive issued by President Museveni.
The Health ministry has, however, maintained that the SHOs should work as they look for money to pay them.
Dr Atwine has previously told this reporter that they have been engaging the SHOs.
“We explained the situation and assured them they would be paid as soon as money is provided. Now if they have decided I don’t know the best way to engage,” she said.
Dr Lubega said there was no clear timeline given by the ministry about payment of their arrears an, as such,d they will continue with the industrial action until government gets the money. Dr Mwebesa, however, advised the SHOs to prioritise their training and work normally.
Currently, the SHOs said, only patients requiring emergency care are being attended to by the skeleton staff in public hospitals.
Pay disputes have long rocked Uganda’s already struggling public health sector. Doctors and other health workers go on strike almost every year because of the government’s repeated failure to honour its promises to improve both working conditions and to pay competitive salaries.
