Deputy Minister Advises Nurses To Be Compassionate

Dr Alfred Tia Sugri, a Deputy Minister of Health, has called on managers of the major hospitals and health facilities to rigorously enforce the staff identification system throughout the country. The enforcement of the system, he said, would facilitate the public and supervisors to appraise sacrificial staff for reward and punish the unethical ones. �I also entreat all hospitals and other facility managers to re-engineer their patient information system to ensure that a 24-hour centre is instituted where dissatisfied clients can register their complaints," he added. Dr Sugri, who was speaking to Ghana News Agency (GNA) after addressing the opening ceremony of Senior Nurses and Midwives conference in Accra, said the call was in response to the numerous complaints that the Ministry had received from clients all over the country. He said while the compassionate performance of most nurses and midwives are commendable, there are some whose attitudes and behaviour towards their clients are unsatisfactory, hence the conference. The conference, which was on the theme:"Compassionate health care and the role of the Nurse/Midwife Manager," was aimed at reminding them of their responsibilities towards their clients and the impact of their performance on the achievement of health goals in the country. Dr Sugri added: �Compassionate health care is the root and life wire for nursing and midwife practice. It is rather unfortunate that such an important ingredient is gradually being eroded from your practice making your care mechanical and devoid of human touch." The Deputy Health Minister said: "There is the urgent need for your leadership to critically study the situation on the ground, identify the root causes and the contributory factors to this eroding compassionate care so as to address this problem in a more realistic and sustainable manner." Dr Sugri gave the assurance that the inauguration of the Governing Council of Ghana College of Nurses and Midwives would help to stem some of the complaints that had been levelled against members in the past. "I would however, want to commend the nurses and midwives on their achievements in General for maintaining a quiet working atmosphere during the course of the year, without any industrial action, despite the challenges in the implementation of the single spine salary pay system."