Regional health workers raise concern on deteriorating healthcare sector
The East Africa Health Sector Unions’ Network (EAHSUN) representatives under Public Services International (PSI) have today been hosted by the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) to address the growing concern of the deteriorating state of public health care system and public healthcare provision in the East Africa region.
The regional healthcare providers cried foul of the deteriorating healthcare sector and welfare at large and called on the government in the region to prioritise provision of public healthcare services, employ more health care workers and pay them adequately.
They have also called on National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) to give a clear roadmap on how it plans to increase contribution with clearly stipulated benefits in line with remittance made and provide adequate medical supplies with good standardised public healthcare infrastructure by adopting the 2001 Abuja Declaration for all African countries so as to help contain the epidemics and pandemics in the continent.
“The COVID 19 pandemic, Ebola, extreme impacts of climate change, poor funding of the public healthcare services have exposed the need for all governments to invest deeply in healthcare services. The states in the region are generally struggling to invest a minimum of 15 per cent of total annual national budget as demanded by the Abuja declaration in 2001,” said KMPDU Secretary General, Davji Atellah.
Three key pressing issues discussed were tied on vaccine, financing and unequal health service provision which was summarised under vaccine access, hesitancy, pandemic preparedness and local production of vaccines, financing of public health services and health inequity within the region.
“The Meeting-in-Session resolved to engage the governments within the East Africa Block to address the identified pressing challenges classified under decline in the level of governments’ investments in the delivery of public health services, poor and inadequate public health care emergencies and pandemic preparedness, poor access to medicines, technology, and vaccines, the effect of climate change to public health care system, prioritise mental health and the psychosocial well-being of healthcare workers and inclusions of workers representatives in East Africa Forum for Health Care,” stated Attellah.
Through the PSI sub-regional secretary Dr. Everlyne Aketch, the health workers called on the governments within the East Africa region to take control and in management of the pandemics as they called on the respective governments to push for local manufacturing of vaccines as based on them is cheap and feasible.
“We, therefore, call on the governments to work with the World Health Organisation (WHO) to develop and negotiate an international instrument for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response, as well as amending international health regulations, prioritise mental health and psychosocial well-being of healthcare workers as well as to include and involve health workers’ representatives in East Africa Forum for Health Care,” observed Aketch.
Remarks reverberated by Uganda Medical Workers Union, Secretary General, Sanya Aggrey who alluded that the governments should commit to formulate taskforces to help find lasting solutions, train more healthcare workers and Voluntary Health Workers and create awareness to help contain the detoriating situation in the health sector.
During the meeting, Atellah was elected the East Africa Health Sector Unions Network president which encompasses health sector unions in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi and Congo.
