Medical Doctors may likely pull out of the COVID-19 fight should their demands are not met by the Government of Sierra Leone. Currently, Members of the Sierra Leone Nurses Association, the Pharmaceutical Society of Sierra Leone (PASSL), Association of Community Health Workers (ACUHW) Officers have reportedly threatened that they will down tools if the government decides to offer a medical doctors special COVID-19 package.
It could be recalled that the representative of the nurses and pharmaceutical association recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Ministry of Finance regarding compensation and incentive package for frontline healthcare workers.
The mouth-watering package did not cover medical doctors as they were not at the signing ceremony. According to the Secretary General of the SLNA, Haurace Nyandemoh said that the doctors always boycott signing ceremonies of this nature as according to her, they make special demands for themselves.
She argued that they make up 75 percent health workforce in this country and that they are with the patients 24/7, adding that during the COVID-19 response period, the doctors only carry out routine checks.
According to the Minister of Health and Sanitation, Dr. Alpha Tejan Wurie, it was agreed that the package should be a standardized one for all healthcare workers.
It could be also recalled that the SLDMA recently made recommendations for COVID-19 compensation package which included PAYE exemption for three months subjects to renewal, a COVID-19 allowance of Le 1 million weekly for those working in treatment and isolation centres; a 50 percent increase in risk allowance, free board and lodging and life insurance policy with payment to next of kin.
However, the Government of Sierra Leone has reportedly responded to demands made by the SLNA and the PSSL.