An resident anaesthesiologist at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr. Esther Neene Agor Ninyeh, has urged the government of Ghana to adopt a motivating system so as to curtail the continuous brain drain of health workers from the country.
Speaking on the rising rate of health professionals leaving the shores of Ghana; a situation that has become a bane to the Ghana Health Service owing to its ramifications to the country, she said that there is the need for urgent attention to be made in this regard.
Data from the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) shows that nearly 4,000 nurses left the country and emigrated to the West in 2022.
The data also pegs the current emigration rate at about 500 every month.
This exodus by the health workers has raised alarms among authorities, especially since the situation is significantly causing what experts describe as brain drain on the healthcare delivery in the country.
It is against this background that the Wellness and Health Care Foundation is instituting an awards scheme to motivate health professionals and acknowledge their dedication to healthcare delivery.
Speaking at an event to launch the Wellness and Health Care Delivery Awards, Dr. Esther Neene Agor Ninyeh said that the situation is so serious such that her colleague doctors are also joining the fray.
She said the situation requires incentivised schemes and motivation for health professionals in order to curb the growing brain drain.
The theme for the event was “Ghana Beyond Aid: The Role of the Wellness and Health Care Sector.”
She commended the Foundation for the initiative, stressing that it would encourage health professionals and help reduce the rate at which health professionals travel abroad in search of greener pastures.
The anesthesiologist therefore called on the government to put measures in place to deal with the menace.
The CEO of Wellness and Health Care Foundation, OB Sinachy, on his part, said wellness and good healthcare delivery is a pre-requisite towards attaining universal healthcare coverage in Ghana.
He said it is the reason the Foundation has instituted this award scheme to motivate health professionals and health centres, adding that their motivation could lead to the attainment of the universal healthcare coverage.
Touching on the theme of the awards, Sinachy explained that the objective of the Wellness and Health Care Awards is to boost the economic development of the country.
“It is our belief that our award to the health Professionals and Health Centres would give them a brand mileage to attract investors to come and invest into our health sector,” the CEO of the Foundation emphasized.
He added that as a result of the awards, “tourists are likely to come into the country and spend monies to shore up our cedi.”
Sinachy later appealed to the government and corporate Ghana to support this initiative in order to curtail the brain drain menace.
A member of the awards committee, Dr. Alberta Ama Atta Ackon, said top 3 health professionals and top 3 health facilities will be selected by the public across the country after which the best will be selected and awarded.
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Dr Ninyeh wants the government to address the motivation issues of health workers