News / Health
Zimbabweans to die due to lack of doctors
16 Mar 2016 at 18:09hrs | Views
Patients are losing their lives in the once glamourous central hospitals across Zimbabwe due to an overwhelming shortage of junior doctors in the health institutions since the 1st of March 2016. People are having to spend up to 12 hours in queues and some collapse and even lose their lives whilist the only available doctor is seeing another patient. The members of the public are now skeptical about visiting the central hospitals but have no choice due to lack of adequate funds to seek alternative medical attention.
A probe into the issue has revealed that the shortage of junior doctors is due to a new development in their employment system.
The Health Services Board (HSB) in Zimbabwe has introduced a contract for newly graduated doctors in order for them to be employed. Junior doctors have since rejected the new contract stating that it has many flaws and violates human rights, labour rights amd women's rights. They reported for work but the HSB ordered that they should not start work until they sign the contract.
This has led to a severe shortage of doctors in the central hospitals.
The Ministry of Health and Child Care (MOHCC) had employed most of the doctors as they previously did in past years on the 1st of March 2016, but then introduced an additional contract. For the past 2 weeks the junior doctors have since not reported for work, leading to severe understaffing and adversely affecting health delivery at central hospitals.
Mpilo hospital and United Bulawayo Hospital have since resorted to opening overtime slots for the more senior junior doctors who have been serving for a year. This means the hospital is paying the doctors to cover work that should be done by the junior doctors and sources say this move is not sustainable. Today, the new junior doctors were called again in an attempt to make them sign these contracts but they turned them down.
Junior doctors have since sent a petition to the HSB highlighting the flaws of this new contract, but the HSB has given no direct communication to the junior doctors as yet. Sources say the HSB Chair, Dr Mbengeranwa said he does not recognise the new junior doctors as employees and he will not scrap the contract. He allegedly said he will not listen to a bunch of rowdy rascals and will not engage in any form of dialogue with them. A week prior to this, he denied even receivng a petition.
The MOHCC has traditionally employed Junior doctors through deployment and signing of assumption of duty forms, and these are legally binding. The current junior doctors are therefore full time employees of the MOHCC but the HSB says it will not recognise that until the new contract is signed.
This new contract denies martenity leave, the right to join any workers association and the right to practice free political freedom amongst other things. Salaries are not stated and are 'subject to review by the employer ' and allowances 'may be paid'. An inside source says the HSB plans on not paying junior doctors a single cent in the long run, and this move is meant to barr any industrial action when the HSB pulls this stunt.
The junior doctors suspect that these are acts of sabotage by the Health Services Board Chair and his subordinates which acts
are intended to bring the government into disrepute and to sow seeds of
discontent towards the government.
Comments from some of the junior doctors show that they indeed have a willingness to serve, but 'a disgruntled doctor is no good to a patient'. The doctors are also queering why the contract was now introduced this year when attempts to introduce it last year failed dismally after the Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association (ZHDA) threatened to put their tools down.
The lives of people are now hanging on already overworked and unqualified medical students and the tirelessly serving available second year junior doctors who are being both seduced and coerced to stretch and cover the load of up to 3 doctors. One of the 2nd year junior doctors said 'We refused to be downgraded to 1st year junior doctors but we are still being forced to cover that gap. The risk of human error is now high as we work long hours with no rest at all'
A probe into the issue has revealed that the shortage of junior doctors is due to a new development in their employment system.
The Health Services Board (HSB) in Zimbabwe has introduced a contract for newly graduated doctors in order for them to be employed. Junior doctors have since rejected the new contract stating that it has many flaws and violates human rights, labour rights amd women's rights. They reported for work but the HSB ordered that they should not start work until they sign the contract.
This has led to a severe shortage of doctors in the central hospitals.
The Ministry of Health and Child Care (MOHCC) had employed most of the doctors as they previously did in past years on the 1st of March 2016, but then introduced an additional contract. For the past 2 weeks the junior doctors have since not reported for work, leading to severe understaffing and adversely affecting health delivery at central hospitals.
Mpilo hospital and United Bulawayo Hospital have since resorted to opening overtime slots for the more senior junior doctors who have been serving for a year. This means the hospital is paying the doctors to cover work that should be done by the junior doctors and sources say this move is not sustainable. Today, the new junior doctors were called again in an attempt to make them sign these contracts but they turned them down.
Junior doctors have since sent a petition to the HSB highlighting the flaws of this new contract, but the HSB has given no direct communication to the junior doctors as yet. Sources say the HSB Chair, Dr Mbengeranwa said he does not recognise the new junior doctors as employees and he will not scrap the contract. He allegedly said he will not listen to a bunch of rowdy rascals and will not engage in any form of dialogue with them. A week prior to this, he denied even receivng a petition.
The MOHCC has traditionally employed Junior doctors through deployment and signing of assumption of duty forms, and these are legally binding. The current junior doctors are therefore full time employees of the MOHCC but the HSB says it will not recognise that until the new contract is signed.
This new contract denies martenity leave, the right to join any workers association and the right to practice free political freedom amongst other things. Salaries are not stated and are 'subject to review by the employer ' and allowances 'may be paid'. An inside source says the HSB plans on not paying junior doctors a single cent in the long run, and this move is meant to barr any industrial action when the HSB pulls this stunt.
The junior doctors suspect that these are acts of sabotage by the Health Services Board Chair and his subordinates which acts
are intended to bring the government into disrepute and to sow seeds of
discontent towards the government.
Comments from some of the junior doctors show that they indeed have a willingness to serve, but 'a disgruntled doctor is no good to a patient'. The doctors are also queering why the contract was now introduced this year when attempts to introduce it last year failed dismally after the Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association (ZHDA) threatened to put their tools down.
The lives of people are now hanging on already overworked and unqualified medical students and the tirelessly serving available second year junior doctors who are being both seduced and coerced to stretch and cover the load of up to 3 doctors. One of the 2nd year junior doctors said 'We refused to be downgraded to 1st year junior doctors but we are still being forced to cover that gap. The risk of human error is now high as we work long hours with no rest at all'
Source - Online
