GRNMA strike: Patients flood private hospitals

Kumasi's private hospitals are currently under pressure as a result of the nurses' and midwives' strike. It has also affected referral cases. Normally a bustling facility, the Suntreso Government Hospital is now deserted, according to William Evans-Nkum of 3news. The facility is literally in ruins as a result of the nurses' strike.

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 One of the units that is negatively impacted is the Mother and Baby Unit.

“Not many hospitals are taking care of newborn babies, and the doctors, for as much as we are able to do the work that nurses do, we are not; our number is not as much as the nurses' number, so it’s very difficult for us to continue taking care of very sick babies on admission in the absence of our nurses,” Dr. Ashura Bakari, pediatrician at the Suntreso Hospital, said.

“Ordinarily you’re supposed to have a nurse working on this particular baby, but it is the doctor who has to abandon the consulting room and all other duties just to be here and ensure that she delivers,” she added.

The story is different at the Anwiam Hospital, a private health facility.

“Surgeries have increased significantly. Over the last, I would say, about four days, we’ve done over 20 deliveries, and over half of these were referrals that required emergency cesarean sections,” Dr. Yaw Antwi said.

 He added that, “The labor ward is also seeing astronomical admissions. And they come in continuously throughout the whole night because when they go to Komfo Anokye, they are sent back; they are sent back here. Emergency cases are coming back.”

 "We have to manage; we have to do the best that we can," stated Dr. Gabriel Boakye, Medical Director of Anwiam Hospital. Sometimes we refer patients, and when they return to you, we do everything we can to help them, to the best of our knowledge and ability.

 As the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) strike continues to cripple public healthcare services nationwide, Belinda Tetteh reports that private hospitals in the Bono East Region are seeing a sharp increase in Outpatient Department (OPD) numbers.

 Because public facilities are either completely closed or operating at a reduced capacity as a result of the departure of midwifery and nursing staff, patients are increasingly seeking necessary medical care at private facilities, which results in overcrowded waiting rooms and overstretched resources. The Seventh-Day Adventist (SDA) Hospital in Fiapre-Sunyani is having a difficult time handling a surge of patients with a small staff, according to our Bono Regional correspondent Claude Kumi Abisa.

 Enoch Opoku Nketia, the administrator of SDA Hospital, revealed alarming data showing that over 100% of patients attended the outpatient department (OPD). Due to budgetary limitations, the current Mahama administration has rejected this demand. The nurses have opposed the government's plan to delay implementation until 2026.

 Following a meeting with the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health, it was decided to meet again in two weeks to continue the conversation.

 Critical areas like the emergency room and the maternity and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) are especially affected by the increased demand for healthcare services.

 The facility is currently running over capacity, according to NICU nurse Linda Afful, who voiced her concerns.

 The SDA Hospital's medical director, Dr. Philip Karikari, expressed his displeasure with the state of affairs and emphasized how dangerous it was to provide healthcare there during the strike.

 Since June 2, GRNMA members have been on strike. They are requesting that the former Akufo-Addo administration implement a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) that has been approved.