GOVERNMENT has tasked a team of officials from the Ministry of Health to investigate the cause of the withdrawal of labour by resident doctors countrywide to determine how the issue will be resolved.
Minister of Health Kapembwa Simbao said currently his ministry does not know why the doctors have downed tools.
Minister of Health Kapembwa Simbao said currently his ministry does not know why the doctors have downed tools.
“The permanent secretary of Health has sent people to the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) to find out what the problem is. When those people give a report, then a way to resolve the issue will be found,” Mr Simbao said.
He said this in an interview following the announcement by the Resident Doctors Association of Zambia (RDAZ) yesterday that its members have withdrawn their labour because their grievances have not been resolved.
RDAZ acting president Amon Ngongola said at a press briefing at UTH that the doctors decided to withdraw labour after attempts to avoid the situation and solve their grievances with the Ministry of Health failed.
“As an executive of RDAZ, we had engaged all channels necessary to avert this action as we recognise that the withdrawal of labour as health workers results in loss of life and no amount of aggravation can be equated to the value of the life of a human being,” Dr Ngongola said.
He said this at a press briefing at UTH yesterday.
Dr Ngongola said in the last two years his association, Zambia Medical Association of Zambia, and the Ministry of Health have been engaged in several discussions to try and resolve the problems that have beset doctors in the country.
He said following the discussions, it became apparent that the ministry had limitations in solving the problems.
“While we recognise the tremendous efforts made by the ministry to try to resolve these problems, it became clear that the ministry had limitations,” Dr Ngongola said.
He said his executive will continue to urge the association’s members to reconsider the decision. Dr Ngongola apologised to President Banda and the public for the action taken by doctors, which he described as unfortunate.
He paid special tribute to Mr Banda for the many development programmes his administration has carried out in the health sector.
Dr Ngongola said the recent commissioning of the magnetic resonance imaging and computer axial tomography scans at the Cancer Diseases Hospital, upgrading of selected clinics to hospitals, opening and building of new hospitals, clinics and health centres and building of new housing facilities for health workers are some of the developments in the health sector.
Dr Ngongola said his association is strongly persuaded that only the listening ear of Mr Banda can address the long-standing grievances affecting its members.
He reiterated that his executive strongly regrets having withdrawn labour and hopes the action will be a thing of the past.
[Zambia Daily Mail]
Doctors you are not the only professionals in the civil & public service. What will happen if we all start behaving like you.
I think they have jumped the gun bcos the mother body ZMA is already addressing issues with govt. I dont know what they want this time bcos the junior most govt doctor takes home 9million minimum while fellow govt degree holders take as little as two million. doctors dont be too greedy
@ 1
These Doctors are behaving like this because they need better salaries and conditions of service, its time the govt listened to them. That is why we keep on saying that instead of getting these mobile clinics,why dont they just improve the conditions of the already existing Hospitals or build other more. How honestly can u be motivated as Dr when patients sleep on the floor, Hospitals & clinics lack medicines,even just panadol, its like being sick is just for the rich. Visit U.T.H my friend and you will know what is going on or if you have a relative who works at a govt clinic or Hospital ask them about their working conditions. That is why Nurses are always frustrated
Minister of health Simbao “does not know why the doctors have downed tools.”????. Meanwhile RB is leaving for Libya. We are running a kindergarten! The minister doesn’t know what is going in his ministry & the non commital president decides, as has always been the case, to leave. We are back in the same circus as seen before when people were dying while president was flying around. He returned & the only 2 urgent issues to him was the prosecution of those informing the nation (kabwela ) & the reappointment of Dora.Who then can solve the problem. I had seen Mpombo get fired for being irresposible over fuel. People are busy kangarooing in offices, where they are expected to make important decisions. Shame & disgrace upon this foreign government which has offices in zambia. Shame! Shame!
Every sector in Zambia is complaining. Even RB at state house,. maybe we all go On strike including RB. zambia should be on auto pilot.
when one thinks he is very educated and the 9million govt is paying him isnt enough its better to quit and go for greener pustures elsewhere or open own surgery. private hospitals are paying less than what govt pays docs. 9million is good money by all standards you can rent a decent house drive a decent car and leave well with some change. this a noble career if you want to get rich like HH or GBM then too bad join them
Stop pretending Minister. The Doctors’ grievances are well known. Their demands are all well documented and known.
Please Mr. President stay home and save lives. Lets STOP dreaming and pretendng. The concerns of Doctors are valid and genuine.
Mr Simbao. I ALL HONEST PLEASE, can you claim you dont know the reason why the Dr have downed tools? That is being irresponsible on your part. What kind of a minister are you then? Kamoto mbewe stated the reason yesterday on better TV (where we have been paying but nothing shows. Maybe it shows thru Muvi TV). Should we conclude that Kamoto and the clue never briefed you as to what has been going on? Please, let us be serious as Zambians for this once. Like this, we will only develop after 1000 years. We are better off ruled by our colonial masters, i believe, coz we ahve failed to rule ourselves.
People in power have continued to let us down.
This dr lucks courage & honesty in his pursuit for attention. First, he is complaining & second he is praising RB. This is how cheap education has been brought down to. If truly, there was a problem that needed attention by “only RB”, he should have stated it in the interview, i dont even blame Simbao for his being aloof of the reason for the strike. His fellow dr r using that acquired knowlege for better things personally than go out there crying for attention. There is no difference between what we used to do when i was at secondary with what a well learned man like him is doing. @6. Dont bring in HH or PF bro! It just makes your comments null of reasoning. The general understanding must draw attention & comments from all free blogging minds like me who is neither Croonies or…
# 6,
sorry but you speak like a fool, how do u expect the Doctors to work when there are no medicines on hospitals,even panadol,they will tell you to go to a pharmacy,just visit a zed clinic and u will see the situation,they smell. The health workers need motivation,now your HERB is busy flying and flying with a bunch of his cabinet when there are problems in the country
# 2. Is it true Doctors take home K 9 million?
For a Doctor to go on strike inshi ifintu nafishupa sana. I feel for them. A lot of thier grievances are not even about their wages and living conditions, its watching fellow humans get sick and die when it could have been prevented.eh eh RB off to Libya, please stop him before he goes (if the plane hasnt already left).
The whole civil & public service needs motivation, not only doctors. There are alot civil servants more educated than doctors getting an average of K4m. if doctors think Govt is giving them inadequate salaries they free to look for greener pastures.
it is very sad pa zade cose life is taff especially us poeple who cant be flied out side zambia for medication. gvt please improve the condition of our doctors. ys we need change of gvt cose our president is always on tour. we elected him so that he can tour the all world not solving problems of poeple are facing in the country. RB think about life of other poeple! it is a shame of our country zambia.
#11. Yes, most doctors take home K9m – K12m every month.
Auditors and accountants take home K8m – K13m every month.
Who takes home K4m (peanuts) my brotha?
….and you think RB and the crew care. when all they can do is simply take themselves out of the country when they are sick and partying it out in Nigeria while you are at it
# 13, am sure your brains are too small or too thick. they go for greener pastures, whos going to be seeing you once your virus erupts. you need them mate not only for useless people like you but for the people that cant afford to private hospitals. people were complaining about brain drain and you are saying they can go. you are proper rubbish only fit enough for the bin.
So meaning the mobile hospitals will be parked when Doctors go on strike . Govt listen to the public s position over this costly venture and possibly improve their conditions of service . Life is precious Ka . Is it because you can easily get on the plane to RSA and now India
#10 ms lubinda ignorance is a disease in which part of the world are you at to think panadol is out of stock in zambia when costly ARVs anti cancer drugs ultra sound MRI are available. you must be in pluto. #11 mutinta yes docs are over 9million per month. #15 you a lair which accountant or auditor is getting 12million what a blue lie when they dont even get half what a doctor gets. Im a graduate i get 4.5million and manage to look after my family well from this decdent home car food and castle lager daily
Don’t criticise Docs be4 you have facts. They have a point deserving attention, but govt has been allof. Agree with with me fellow Zambian (& non zambians alike) when I say ‘We are running a kindergarten!” A Minister of health named Simbao “does not know why the doctors have downed tools.”????. Meanwhile RB is leaving for Libya. The minister doesn’t know what is going on in his ministry & the non commital president proves that not only does he not know as well, but that he doesn’t even care: ‘”SORRY ZAMBIANS I ‘VE A PLANE TO CATCH & FEW DEALS TO FINALISE IN LIBYA- If i get sick there, send Musokotwane sends a cheque”
The whole reaction from gorvernment tells you that something is wrong there is gross irresponsibility on the part of the government
chansa kabwela prepare your cameras mwaiche
@ #20 TC progressor
Where did you get the information that the President is off to Libya?
You’ve also heard that the Health Minister has dispatched a team to go find out what the problem is and how best to solve it.
You are criticizing for the sake of criticizing.
#17 sol just continue cleaning an arse of an old white woman if you are in chicago atlanta newyork dallas thats all you do house servant in USA KABOYI
#23, mate iam right here in Zed, to be precise am in solwezi mambala lyobe. no white or black arse to clean. i earn a decent living mate but their are people that need these doctors. if you dont they do.
by the way dont vent your frustration ovaeryour luck of education on them. 7 years, they deserve it.
#23 wasted arse, kamba
Any doctor who stops work is not worthy of the profession FULL STOP. If the grievance has to do with thee conditions OF SERVICE, then they have the liberty to leave and go across the borders to find work where the remuneration will be satisfactory. If the grievance has to do with the conditions and circumstances IN WHICH they have to work, for the benefits of their patients, they do not have to attend to the same patients in order to get their grievances known. These men and women in white coats are envious of their millionaire lawyer class mates and think because they are ‘brainy’ they should have the same life style. Tough! Medicine is a service. In actual fact Hippocrates even refused to be paid at all!
#26 should read: ‘they do not have to stop attending to the same patients in order to get their grievances known.’
#26, i thought we had people with sense but kwati palast naiwe ulimusula fye utuntulu. we all render a service in some way but we have to be paid to survive wecipuba wee
You know, people who complain about the President travelling are like children in a starving family refusing to let their father go to look for work because he should be attending to them! How does he find the resources to deal with the problem at hand if he does not work? There is no money in Zambia bane! Money comes from outside. Outside investment brings jobs and technical exchange. Jobs expand the tax base. An expanded tax base means more revenue for the government and more revenue for government means more money for public services on which we all depend. It cannot be simpler! It is not rocket science!
#28 sol
I AM a doctor.
There you go again, debating personal achievements & the like. This blog!!!!!!!!! for kid surely.
#11 Mutinta- No 2 is dreaming. The highest paid GRZ District officer gross is 4,000,000 per month. Subtract PAYE,etc your guess is mine.
#30 THE SAINT – As a doctor how do you find time to blog 24/7? Where do you find time for patients? Which country are you?
#33 Deja Vu
I am not a slave of time, time is my slave. I have mastered the art of making time work for me. I can do anything I want whenever Iwant.
Doctors get back and work to save life and not your quick decisions which happen to be unreasonable…to gather money for your salaries,People who do that work went back for work for the sake of people like you only at 8% salary increament and I thot Doctors care about the patients..now it is all about money…I know the useless RB govt will never improve things so just do work for the sake of that brethren of us dying of cancer,AIDS,Malaria etc, do it for them and not RB and his govt..I plead for the patients only
“As an executive of RDAZ, we had engaged all channels necessary to avert this action as we recognise that the withdrawal of labour as health workers results in loss of life and no amount of aggravation can be equated to the value of the life of a human being,” Dr Ngongola said.
Do you really mean what you say and just decided to take politics to the place it shouldn’t be taken? :-w
#32 Deja Vu
It is only in Zambia where people quote the salary and then append ‘subtract PAYE!’ I always find this fascinating. In the free world, tax is not a burden but an appropriate part of one’s income to contribute to the society. In fact, the more tax one pays, the better. But in Zambia, public giving and giving to charity is so unheard of that the subliminal message that is sent when a person says ‘minus tax’ is like saying, ‘Hey! That is not my money but if it is, GRZ has stollen from me!’
#37 true very strange can’t agree more. As economists say the only guarantee in life is Tax and death , in Zambia circles paying taxes or donating to charity is not an honour , though I must say churches have at least made some Zambians learn to give in the form of tithe. How tithe and taxes are used remains a hot debate in Zambia. :d
The gross pay for >99.99% of junior doctors in zambia is K7,435,976 and net pay of K5,257,085.The K9m someone is talking about here can only be arrived at if the on-call allowance of K4m is added.This on-call allowance is paid for extra work or over-time if you like and so it doesn’t make sense to include it in considering how much a doc gets paid as compared to other civil servants because we can’t tell for sure what those other civil servants get as allowances.Truth be told,a medical doc is not just any other civil servant and you can treat him like any other civil servant at your own peril.If health is health is number 1, then without it, all the zeros that follow it are meaningless.Those docs are only asking for conditions to enable them live a life befitting their status.
# 37THE SAINT- You bring up a good point. Even in Romans 13:6-8 we are encouraged to pay taxes so that the Government can be able to keep order in the country. Where you are this is happening. The taxes citizens pay in Western Countries go to make life better for the citizens such as medical services, good schools pot holeless roads etc. But here the Tax that I pay(in excess of 3.5m Kwacha ) only goes to satisfy those in government. Mean while I have to pay medical bills not only for me but also for my old mother from the net which I am left with after PAYE and other statutory deductions. Where you are there is even a provision my the governments to look after their unemployed citizens. The Bible while it tells us to pay our obligations it also cautions (Ecclesiastics. 8:9) the tax…
The Bible while it tells us to pay our obligations it also cautions (Ecclesiastics. 8:9) the tax collectors not to exploit us which is actually the case here in Zambia.
so what about primary school teachers? how much do they take home? i think its time such pivotal civil servants were looked into critically as these are right at the beginning of the educational thread. without them not doctor, engineer or any one who calls themselves learned or educated will be around. yes medical doctors are important but equally important are the patients who may be teachers or lecturers or policemen or even toddlers who are future leaders. so if its true they rake in about 7m and go home with 5m, probably they should reflect on their stand.
When I was an intern in Zambia, my salary was K400 per month. At that time the exchange rate was K60 per $1. I was living on less than $100 per month! We never went on strike! Now, these doctors are earning according to Kadobi $1000 per month and that is more than 10 times more. Besides this, I was on-call 1 in 3 but with one senior house officer and a Consultant. there was no extra pay for on-call. Granted, things cannot remain the same, but we have come to where they are today, through gentle and patient negotiations. You will be amazed how sympathetic people are with doctor’s plight and you only carry their support when you act as grown ups.
# 39 Kadobi, all doctors are paid on-call allowance whether or not they work overtime, this a fact.
Deja Vu
Well written
Now that we have a democracy, if we believe that our taxes are being misappropriated, we have the right to change government. All the income that government has comes from tax and donors. This income is tabled before parliament and our elected represenattives in parliament have to agree to how the cake is gonna be divided. Our newspapers would do well to publicise the parliamentary debates so that people know how money is spent. I complained about Chiluba’s K10b constitutional expenditure in the budgets that all MMD finance ministers presented, but I was a lone voice. Now they are all wondering where he got the money in Zamtrop account from. Yes, we must pay tax and Government MUST be accountable. I agree.
#43 THE SAINT – What year was that? We can only debate if you state the year.
Is the minister of health so detouched to the ministry that he doesn’t know what is going on with the doctors. This is very serious indeed and must be one of the reasons for the doctors’ action.
# 37, The money that i pay as payee is not mine, its for Ruphiah to make his trip abroad and for the likes of chiluba to buy suits. it is supposed to be used to uplift the lives of zambians but hell no. no medicine in hospitals, bad roads. so where does it go
I think there is a big issue here which the govenment is oblivious to. This government needs to wake up and smell the coffee. It is unacceptable that after close to half a century of independence the standards of service and infrastructure are so pathetic. Does RB not know that there are pressing issues for him to resolve at home, instead of globe trotting. If , as he claims, he was elected, it was by the people of Zambia who currently need him to set his priorities right. It boils down to a simple word – Economics! Thats all that matters and thats what should be the focus.
No politics at all but call a spade a spade….taxes in Zambia are a burden and the reason is simple the tax base is limited,,we need measures to improve on this,this is not ZRA’s responsiblity but GOVT to put in place policies to help all it’s citizens-this has been so from the Chiluba regime..I am responding to blog 36 to 38..Brothers there is work to be done,people sacrifice and we should appreciate, hope to have a listening GOVT oneday
It is a pit that it is a common man who will suffer and not the Doctors or govt officials. The Doctors should understand that even if their problems or demands are addressed today, patients in this country will still continue to suffer because these doctors will not put back the earnings at the end of the day. Improving their situation will not take them anywhere as they will be in Zambia, as Zambia has been mismanaged including them have contributed to this chaos. They have failed to come up with anything to show us the public. Let them take sympathy.
It is a matter of priorities. You can own whatever you care to own, but I doubt it very much that you would really appreciate it that much if your health was in shambles. Doctors, being the ones who look after our No.1 possession, must be properly appreciated. The attitude that results in some telling the doctors to go to hell is what has contributed to the severe poverty of our health services. Those telling the doctors to go elsewhere if they are not happy here, don’t you know how many doctors have left Zambia over the years? They can indeed go, and it is the ordinary poor people who will continue to suffer.
#46 Deja Vu
Sorry Deja Vu. We should not debate my salary. We are debating the principle here.
I am ashamed that I have had to go into my personal qualification for this subject because #28 sol pushed me. What most people do not realise is that health care is not cheap. There is not a single country in the world that has got it perfect. Cuba is reputed to have the best healthcare system in the world, but Cuban doctors are paid so miserably that they cannot wait to be sent out of the country by their government as National Service. When 65% of healthcare budget goes into salaries how can you improve the services by increasing salaries even further?
#53 THE SAINT- Thanx. You know the problem with our country is thst we dot embrace the motto- DO IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME. We let our stadards fall so deep that it will take a miracle to go back to 1964-1973 when we had a chance to make our country among the best in the world. We tried MMD who also lost an opportunity to make a name for themselves as the BEST GOVERNMENT. I wonder what is wrong with us.
How can their problems be solved when the mobile traveller is busy parking his suitcase ryt now in readiness for the Nigerian trip? I feel for the nurses even more because they are given a far more raw deal than doctors!
Apart from RB and his bootlickers, everyone else in the civil service is under paid and that is really frustrating!!
#44, All doctors in zambia are obliged to work over time and they all work over time and that’s why they all may be getting the on call allowance as you put it.I personally would not say that all doctors get on call allowance because I know atleast one who doesn’t do calls and only gets his salary without on call allowance so to me your statement that “all doctors get on call allowance” doesn’t qualify as a fact.If you say “marjority” then I’ll agree with you.
#43,The Saint, sorry think I have failed to put in perspective the relevance of those figures of K400 salary per month and K0 for on call you were getting to the current situation the doctors find themselves in.How on earth are we going to debate this issue if we start quoting figures and conditions from the antedeluvian…
Ba Saint and Dejavu please spare us. Tax in Zambia is a burden and please dont compare paying of taxes in your country and paying taxes in Zambia our economies are different (although the objective of tax is the same). Bane tax mu zambia ilakalipa! @ 33% it is really suffocating. People cannot even save, it is hand to mouth living for many. We dont object to paying tax but when we do, we would like to see an improved lifestyle and not worse. However, the issue of tax can be debated the whole day and av work to do so i will leave that battle for another day.
#57 Ghostrider – I think you got me wrong. What I said is that these taxes could be justfied if we saw tangible divends for the general population. Read all my subs and you will see what I meant
keep hammering the MMD thieves..they shud pay u well guys..
#57 Ghostrider
I have a friend who works in South Africa but seconded to Zambia. He made himself non-dorm in SA so that he copuld be taxed in Zambia! If Zambian tax is onerous why did he do this?
As Deja Vu says, we need to see the tax working but at the same time if you read the budget, you will understand that no matter how much money comes from PAYE, it is nothing to sort out the problems of long years of neglect. Kaunda just printed money whenever the going got hot. Chiluba aquandered the goodwill from the whole world in 1991 by personal aggrandisement. Funny thinh is that 99% of Zambians who are in politics today have been part and parcel of the terrorism of previous governments, directly or indirectly. They are all bereft of ideas how to make wealth!
Sorry for the typological mistakes. I hope I still make sense. Oh! The marvels of the human brain in language understanding! And some learned man thinks the brain just got here by chance?
The Saint; you are so far off the mark on a number of things. Firstly, in the “free world” we do talk about net take home pay all the time, the equivalent of “subtract paye”. Why you would find fault in that is kind of ludacris. Your analogy about presidential trips around the world being the equivalent of a father scrounging for food for his starving children is perhaps the least sensible thing I have heard this month. I mean you being a medicine man must surely u/stand the value of evidenced based protocol right. Well let me’ remind you that there is little to no proven correlation between the Presidents number of trips and poverty erradication in Zambia, almost like the father who travels to Zimbabwe every month to seek employment would probably better use his savings feeding his…
Starving children at home. Even more important is your meager salary of K400 monthly a couplenof decades ago does little to justify your point. For if you are to look atvyge free world as an example then surely you should u/stand that part of their success comes from a model of recognition and priority for highly trained and on high demand professions. So surely you must then u/stand the frustration that comes from a government with priorities so misplaced that a William Banda can live in luxury while health professionals, the true spinal support of a nation are poorly-compensated. In essence we are communicating to the future generations that hard work may pay, butvthuggery pays better. Imagine trying to build a nation on such a foundation The Saint. Surely you being a Doctor must see…
There are a lot of *****ic things which Saint has mentioned. But I have one question for him: in which country is he practising? If its not Zambia, please let him go fark himself!
#63 Abena CB
Thanks for your civil debating.
I am sorry that I cannot continue with this thread when people resort to un-repeatbles. So long.
The outcome of this will be these doctors going abroad. The USA and UK are lacking doctors and nurses.
When Recruitment Consultants & Head-hunters hear such stories about the plight of doctors in Africa – they normally start fly to African countries as tourists.
Thereafter, find their way to these doctors, arrange secret interviews and buy tickets for them.
God forbid – we don’t end up loosing these professionals. We cannot afford to loose then, not at this junction, where we are as a nation.
nurses were threatened to be fired when they went on strike last year. Doctors get about 8/9M after the taxes,the on-call allowance is given to them regardless of how many times they go on-call. Nurses get 1.8M after taxes….just how poor is 9M when people you work with get 1.8? I think most of us were mislead when we were young and thought we would get rich by becoming medical doctors,,,,,heard of Zuckerberg? it’s not the number of years in class that translate into millions/billions. I know these guys(Docs) who are living a normal life and drinking everyday,,,,if you really wana get rich,just change the career,it’s not too late and I think u got the brains to study something else,or better still to run a business.
I have to admit , i’ve yet to meet a person who finds paying income tax an honour !
…..So what is the cause of this ? Conditions of service or working conditions.? The minister of health does not know yet pipo here seem to have an idea .
# 4 TC Progressor Your forthright views , I support.
One thing is clear: Simbao and the rest of his cronies in the MMD don’t give a rat’s A@$ whether or not the doctors go on strike; they will be flown out to South Africa for medical treatment.
Doctors, don’t strike and make too much noise. Govt of the day does not care about anything. They are busy making themselves cozy financially. Queitly apply for jobs abroad and disappear, thats it. You are very marketable globally, it’s not like these other professionals who are recognized in zed only. Get moving and make a difference for yourselves. Noble profession!!! kiss my a…s….s.
# 68The Lord SITH- I dont know how old you are but would like to share with you the paye story. Before Arthur Wina introduced PAYE, NRG/GRZ officers used to collect tax from individuals physically. What used to happen when time to collect UMUSONKO came people would run into the bushe untill umusungu wa MUSONKO has left the area.
AT THE END OF THE DAY THESE JUNIOR DOCS WILL GO BACK TO WORK WITHOUT ACHIEVING ANYTHING BUT LETTERS OF REPRIMAND ON THEIR FILES WHICH WILL AFFECT PROMOTION SPONSORSHIP AND FRINGE BENEFITS
Ngongola so pathetic you RB bootlicker.
Doctors in z need to learn to improve the health system, not just better salary. Its much more that just equipment and salary. Maybee only one or two in the whole country have any idea. The rest are useless.
In nothing do men more nearly approach the gods than in giving health to men. ~Cicero
Restore a man to his health, his purse lies open to thee. ~Robert Burton
Men who are occupied in the restoration of health to other men, by the joint exertion of skill and humanity, are above all the great of the earth. They even partake of divinity, since to preserve and renew is almost as noble as to create. ~Voltaire (1694-1778) French writer and historian.
Dear Friends,
I’d like to share my story with you. As a child, I grew up with a passion – to serve mankind, and pursuing the career of medicine was the ultimate way of fullfiling this dream. This dream was not easy to pursue.
….continued below
After making it to the University of Zambia, I had to work very very hard to make it to the top 50 of a class of approx. 500 students (of the cream of the country). It took me 9 years to qualify as a doctor – the two extra years were as a result of the closures at UNZA. These years deprived me of many aspects of life out there. While I had no regrets with my choice of career and loved what i was doing, I did long to live a normal life as most young people and more specifically my contemporaries at UNZA did. After graduating as a doctor, I looked forward to the life ahead with alot of hope and enthusiasm. I began work as a intern. Being the first line doctor dealing with emergencies, I have no words to describe the physical, mental and emotional toll this took on me.
…continued below
I had long working hours with ALOT of risks and hazards one of which impacted me greatly on a personal level. At the end of a long call day, while drwaing blood from an HIV + patient, I was pricked as the patient was restless. At this point, I was breastfeeding my 4-month old baby……my world came to a stand still as I had to stop breast feeding my baby and had to start taking ARVs for prophylaxis. This was heartbreaking for me. I also had to face the reality of the possibility of contracting the disease putting my husband and family at risk. This has happened to several of my friends and collegue.Furthermore, I was threatened with an eviction letter from my landlord as my rentals were due. At this point, I began to question my choice in career.
…continued below
In as much as I wanted to serve mankind, I did not see it fair that I would have to continually worry about the health of my family, having a roof over my head and the inability to provide a decent way of life for my children. These stressed, unfortunately are bound to affect my practice which is supposed to be my passion. I am surely not inspired to have my children pursue a career in medicine especially not in a country where people percieve doctors as sacrificial lambs. Surely, we too as human beings deserve to live a decent life. After all, isn’t education ultimately meant to better the quality of life. I do not feel that our demands are outrageous.
…continued below
A few points of clarification:
1) Our basic salary is K4.3 million.
2) We receive approx. K500 000 as housing allowance (someone tell me where in Lusaka I can find a decent and safe place to live with my family???)
3) Our on-call allowance is K4 million. This money is the equivalent of ‘OVERTIME’ in other professions. This is madatory overtime as doctors cannot opt out. This is in order to help the system run health care 24hrs with limited doctors in the country. I would like to further stress that this K4 million is earned by working many nights, weekends and public holidays while everyone else is relaxing with family and friends.
4)Both the salary and on-call allowance are almost always late.
Dear Friends,
It is unfortunate if you still feel that our demands are unjustified. If you do, it questions your value of human life……………….
Thank you for reading.
THE DOCTOR