The Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) has expressed dissatisfaction with the irregularities and disparities in the payment of risk allowances and medical insurance to medical professionals who were at the forefront of the COVID-19 battle.
On Monday, January 23, Perpetual Ofori Ampofo, the president of the GRNMA, announced on the 3FM Sunrise Morning Show that reports from some of their affected members suggest that the insurance and risk allowances they were given had not been paid to them.
“The ministry of health made it clear that some medical insurance plans had been put in place and that we should dedicate ourselves to the work so that we save lives and that there is a certain amount that will be given to you when you are infected; if you fall critically ill, an amount will be given; and if you pass away, a certain amount will be given to your family,” she said.
“Even after the payment was initiated, we continued to receive reports from all over that some who, as a result of their employment, fell ill and even admitted they never received their insurance benefits,” Madam Perpetual told 3FM Sunrise.
She said that over the past few years, their leadership has made several attempts to bring up some of these issues with the ministry of health in order to inquire about the current state of these insurances’ payment, but each time the ministry has responded, “We’ve covered all of them,” despite GRNMA’s request for the ministry to share the ministry’s data with GRNMA.
Recent meetings with the membership took place in Asante Juaben, and I was there.
As a result, it’s possible that some of our members across the nation do not have insurance based on the fact that they were hospitalized and infected. This issue astonished the members when it came up again, and they reported that, despite being infected, they had still not gotten their insurance.
The situation, according to Madam Ofori Ampofo, borders on a violation of trust and doesn’t position Ghana effectively against potential pandemics. She implores the Ministry of Health to examine its data in order to identify and properly credit the health professionals who are entitled to COVID insurance coverage.
Her statement follows the revelation that certain top officials at the Ministry of Information had been paying themselves COVID-19 risk allowances without permission.
The health professionals who worked at the treatment institutions, according to Madam Perpetual, were not all given the required 50% risk allowance.
When it comes to danger, the employee at the treatment facility is even fully aware that the patients I am dealing with have COVID, but for me, the nurse employed by other institutions is unable to even determine whether the patient I am receiving has COVID. Therefore, people who work in other health facilities are more vulnerable than those who work in treatment facilities. She remarked
She said that there were several inconsistencies in how risk allowances were paid to the staff members of the treatment facilities.
She argued that regular medical insurance for health workers must be implemented, stating that “in many cases, nurses and midwives who are ill must take care of themselves while in the hospital, and even in the facilities where they work, they still have to pay for almost everything; therefore, a medical insurance cover for health professionals is a step in the right direction.”
In order for us to continue offering our services, the employer should be responsible for protecting the employee’s health.
According to the GRNMA president, protecting their members is their first priority as union leaders, particularly as nurses and midwives care for patients at their bedsides all day.
CREDIT: 3NEWS.COM