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The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has expressed concerns about the number of unemployed medical doctors and dentists in the country.

The Association found it worrying that newly qualified medical doctors and dentists are currently staying home and wasting away to the detriment of health care delivery in the nation.

The GMA cited lack of financial clearance as the reason for non-posting of the medical doctors/dentists by the Ministry of Health.

A statement released by the Association read that the "GMA is gravely concerned about the creeping incidence of unemployment for medical doctors and dentists in the country in spite of the fact that Ghana still suffers from an abysmal doctor to patient ratio. Several communities and districts in the country do not have medical doctors and dentists to serve them at all, whilst trained manpower languishes at home. Some facilities continue to be manned by single individuals who tend to be overworked and in most cases cannot even take their annual leaves.

"It is worrying that newly qualified medical doctors/dentists as well as those who have completed Horsemanship over seven (7) months ago are currently staying at home unemployed wasting away to the detriment of health care delivery in the country. The GMA takes very serious view of this development and will like to state that the citing of lack of financial clearance as the reason for non-posting of medical doctors/dentists by the Ministry of Health is not acceptable".

The Association also noted that "the list of the affected medical doctors/dentists was submitted by the Medical and Dental Council (MDC) to the Ministry of Health for onward transmission to the Ministry of Finance over 5 months ago for financial clearance. It is therefore very difficult to understand why same had not been secured as of now to effect quality health care to the populace."

It therefore called on the Ministry of Health and the Finance Ministry to liaise and speed up the financial clearance of the qualified medical doctors and dentists to allow their posting to serve the country.