A human rights organization has expressed concern at revelations on the continued use of unqualified personnel such as Security Guards and Cleaners to attend and administer medicines to patients in both Private and Government Clinics and health Posts.
Hope for Human Rights executive director Smart Chanda says the trend should be a source of worry to the Government and should be stopped with immediate effect as it puts the lives of the patients in danger.
Mr. Chanda says Article 25 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; which instruments are both ratified by Zambia declare Health and Health Care as a fundamental right to every human being.
He has therefore stated that it is expedient that the Government strives to provide the best Health services to its people.
Mr. Chanda says it is negligence of the worst kind on the part of government to have allowed the situation reach such levels where unqualified personnel are allowed to be attending to patients and administer medicines.
He has since called for the inclusion of Economical, Social and Cultural Rights in the new constitution so that successive governments are held squarely responsible for such omissions in future.
And Deputy Minister of Health Patrick Chikusu has stressed that no untrained health personnel will be allowed to attend to patients.
He said it is unprofessional for any unqualified health personnel to administer health care services to patients saying the trend poses health risks to the citizenry.
Dr. Chikusu was on a familiarisation tour of health infrastructure in Northern Province in an effort to make health personnel realign themselves to the heath care policy of the new Patriotic Front government.
Meanwhile, government has said that a competent and motivated health workforce has the potential to contribute meaningfully to the social and economic development of the country.
Dr. Chikusu said government will do everything possible to motivate the health personnel in the country.
Dr. Chikusu said it was in this vein that the Patriotic Front (PF) government has increased the budgetary allocation to the health sector in the 2012 national budget in order to motivate health workers.
He said government was also working on modalities of paying all the outstanding arrears owed to the health personnel in the country.
The Deputy Minister said this when he addressed health workers at Kasama General Hospital in Kasama recently.
And Dr. Chikusu has disclosed that government will this year employ a total of 2, 500 health personnel countrywide to beef up the number of health staff in the country.
Dr. Chikusu further said government has also reintroduced in-service training so that the heath sector can have competent and specialized personnel to attend to specific diseases in all health centres across the country.
The Deputy Minister further said the retention of health personnel both from within the country and abroad will be made practical due to government’s seriousness to address the needs of all health personnel in the country.
ZANIS
Sometimes its ‘pragmatism’, if a rural health centre is manned only by a cleaner and a few malaria cases po up as she cleans in the morning, what is she suppose to do? Let them die because she is not qualified, right?
In a developed country, this is a failure of policy and the Minister of Health resigns. In Zambia, he laughs all the way to the bank to get his salary!
When are people going to take life seriously and force these inept politicians to be accountable for their in-action?
There is a shortage of medical personnel in Zambia!! but you’ve got to ask yourself why?? The govt don’t pay enough and not on time.Most of them have left Zambia for other countries where the pay is decent. If the govt start paying good money they’ll see the difference.
WALASA CHIBUSA !!!!!
you very right pound and pence…am a health proffesional i would like to go back home and work but with the way thing are might just go back when i retire form here..
THIS IS SERIOUS- CLEANERS AND SECURITY GUARDS!!!!! WHAT IS THE MINISTER OF HEALTH DOING. AND WHERE IS KAMBWILI? MAYBE THEY NEED TO DEPLOY KAMBWILI IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH.
SO ALL THESE CHAPS IN THE PICTURE ARE SECURITY GUARDS? I WOULD ADVISE PEOPLE TO MEMORISE THEIR FACES.
Zambia – Organized Chaos
Good evening
I am shocked to learn that security guards and cleaners attend to patients in our hospitals. Is this how bad the situation is?
This calls for immediate action and not just promises that government will do this and that to motivate the health personnel.
There are many qualified Zambian Doctors and Health personnel abroad and the government should look closely at the implementation of “brain gain”. I am not in the medical field but in this technological age of global network, I think there’s a lot that can be done to get the Diasporans actively involved in the finding solutions to these problems.
@Nine Chale, yes you are shocked because you have been out of the country for a long time, or if you go to Zambia, you are only in Lusaka. I worked for MoH in Luapula province and I know the realities of this problem. This shortage of health workers has lead to some of the health posts, especially in the remote areas to be run by CDEs or security guards. MoH has been aware of this problem for a long long time. My fear is without these CDEs most rural health post would be closed and people will have no access even to be most basic health care.
MWANA DADDY @Bemba man WALASA!!!!!!!!!!!!. CHALE UKESE FIRST UKAMONE IFWO CHABA KUNO. DONT PONTA FROM WITHOUT
If they don’t who will? Our hospitals are highly understaffed. Face the reality and own up! This is another reason why we need many medical schools in Zambia.Â
A law should be enacted ensuring that all health centres should have atleast 1 qualified health worker. That way, if there is none, then the citizens can sue government and be compensated for being save panadol by ‘cleaners’.
I am told at UTH at times a medical student ends up doing some operations like cesarean sections when there is completely no doctor available. its totally illegal but it happens.
Bufi bweka bweka community healthy workers are trained to give paracemol and polio drops and some counter drugs They have nothing to complain about Why can’t they complain about mushrooming drug stores who sale half course of antibiotics no pharmasists to check and explain to the patient the side effects of the drugs. Kabieni uko mwalibelera fye ukishita red na black cupsule pamarket
This is a challenge for our Country. We need practical sustainable solutions for our health centres in our rural areas. Maybe, instead of demonising cleaners and security guards, the Govt could look into providing some relevant basic training to this category of people, who show such dedication. For a start, they originate within that particular locality of a given health centre. So they are at home, as opposed to being posted to that place against their wishes. This is where the ‘Village concept’ comes in .i.e building on existing bonds.
Mr. Deputy minister i urge you to be googling before you twitt. Those same CDEs you are belittling are the backbone of our health centers and posts, without which there will be no provision of health care. You may wish to know that the same CDEs and guards are recognized by supporting partners like JSI and CDC no wonder they train them in certain skills. Point: We are still far from doing without CDEs and guards providing healthcare. Leave your comfort zone and explore rural Zambia.
@11, Brabus my point exactly… I agree with you 100% that they just need to provide basic training to these people rather than humiliate them publicly as though they committed a crime.
The government should also start offering training to administer medicine to secondary school students who are in year 12 and pay them a little appreciation fees. It’s cheaper and patients don’t have to die from fever and other preventable ailments.
How do you know someone hasn’t already died from being given a wrong dose or being misdiagnosed?
Lower taxes,More jobs and more money in the pockets.For who?
i say this is abuse of cleaners and security guards of the highest order. i demand they financially be compensated immediately
Which one of all of us has never administered a drug to him/herself , a relative or friend? In dire situations some things are necessary. Anyone who has the heart for it can learn the ART of medicine. Whats important is to know what ones limitations are. Am not saying GRZ should sit back and do nothing no, but we should strive to make things better while in the mean time in most places in our country, that guard will be your saviour! Because he was taught by someone who knows.
this is unacceptable, something should be done!
THIS IS NOT NEW, WE ARE USED TO BEING ATTENDED TO BY PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT QUALIFIED SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL. WE DO NOT EXPECT ANY CHANGE BECAUSE POLITICIANS HAVE NOT CHANGED, THEY JUST CHANGE POLITICAL PARTIES SO NO NEW IDEAS. WITHOUT POLITICAL WILL NOTHING CAN CHANGE IN ZAMBIA.
The issue is deeper than this. MoH in Zambia is for Medical Doctors only and it is fully lead by them only. This has resulted in negilecting some health professionals like Pharmacists, Lab scientists, radiologists, social workers, nurses, tutors, phyiotherapists and others. this situation has resulted in a complex situation which can only be addressed by a full reveiw of things within the ministry and govt policies, implementation plans and funding. addressing only one side of the coin leaves the other exposed to bad elements and failure of the entire system. I am not sure if PF govt is ready to be the one to address this complex issue which will not be address by 100% increase in pay. This part calls for real leadership
Zambian leaders should be realistic for once. The Deputy Minister is aware of this long standing problem of shortage of trained health personnel. MoH has numerous challenges and do not seem to have solutions. We need to go back to the ” HEALTH BOARDs”, put proffessionals like doctors in hospitals to SEEEE patients and not in administration. As long as doctors mushroom at Ndeke house – MoH Hqs, the other professionals will not accept to work in rural Zambia for less than 1,000 US dollars.
Its also time for these politicians start debating on reducing their allowances and gratuities and contribute to the poor civil servants.
We shall continue using cleaners and security guards as long as we do not have serious leaders
Thats why ministers flock to SA for treatment.. Even for BP check up.
How many health workers are at Nsumbu in Nsama District, Chimba in Mungwi or Isoko in Mpulungu? Community volunteers and CDEs attend to patients in some facilities because of shortage of staff. Who would want to work in an area where there is no electricity, clean water or accommodation? The government should find ways of motivating us if we should work in rural areas. Rural areas are under developed i.e. roads are bad, no electricity in Muyombe and Kaputa…only one poor bank in Mporokoso and no bank in Muyombe. One has to travel long distances to get paid. I am appealing to the new gvt to address the many challenges we are currently facing in rural areas.
What do you expect when the MMD were busy inventing new agriculture technics of planting money intheir farms. By the way how much was Liato going to harvest?
Guys be informed that ministry of Health has already started training the CDEs and Security gurds in Ndola and will graduate by the end of this year and more are yet to be trained.Our country should allocate more funds in preventive medicine otherwise its more expensive to treat a sick person than preventing DISEASES;once a person gets sick it either they die or get healed or be deformed but someone who prevents an illness has no risks or worries.
I agree with Wiselady that more prevention type medicine needs to be promoted, but the reality is people get sick, and many times they have treatable or curable illnesses. Â My friend worked in a Luapula village where the janitor was the only person working at the clinic and he worked quite hard. Â Emergency Medical Technicians need only a semester long course in the U.S. to become certified, and basic first aid needs even less time to to train someone. Â That’s what we should be doing, and training more people as adherence agents in TB and ART (although I disagree with Kay; there can be serious side-effects from ART, and I actually think many Zambian doctors need to do a better job in finding the right drugs for individuals). Â But Zambia needs to retain more health care workers.
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