Ministry of health deputy minister Christopher Mulenga said the working culture of some health workers were undermining the Patriotic (PF) government making the ruling party losing parliamentary by-elections in the country.
Mr Mulenga who is in charge of infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and health care financing and also Chinsali parliamentarian said this when he toured Kaoma district hospital and Nkeyema rural health centre in Kaoma district yesterday.
He said reports of health workers harassing and ill-treating patients in all government hospitals were real as he personally witnessed a nurse harassing his biological mother at a named hospital in his constituency.
Mr Mulenga said there is no discipline in all the management levels and that the ministry lacks proper leadership qualities.
He said all health workers in the ministry should change their working attitudes towards patients as they are already on a weaker position, they are sick, their relatives want help, why harassing them.
Mr Mulenga said government will have no option but to discipline any erring health personnel. He said the ministry has competent and clean health workers who were not exhibiting care towards patients which is against the profession and medical ethics, a situation has compelled him to be on television and radios, a platform he will use to counsel all health workers in the country next week.
The deputy minister said government has not sat idle as it is on course of improving the country better than it was in the past governments.
Mr Mulenga said government has embarked on a massive infrastructure development and opening up of new training colleges, and rehabilitating old structures and turn them into nursing schools in order to improve the human resources in the ministry that will march up with ever growing population in the country.
He also said that the government has enough Antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) in stock in the country that would last for the next one year and that people on ARVs should not panic and requested officers in charge distributing these essential drugs to avoid the pilfering of these life saving drugs.
Mr Mulenga said government has started the process of rebranding drugs in a bid to cushion the pilferage of drugs in all the facilities in the country.
He said government will in the next two to three weeks launch the construction of 62 rural health centres in Western province out of the 650 rural health centres earmarked for construction countrywide.
Mr Mulenga further said he has noted the shortage of ARVs reagents in all the hospital facilities in the province and that government will soon address the matter as funds were available adding that some of the reagents are not stocked at the medical store of Zambia as they are just directly bought from partners as they are not standardized.
The deputy minister was in the province to check of the infrastructure development and other government projects.
Working culture in Zambia is pathetic am asking myself a question how have you metamorphosing in this cosmopolitan planet? Never you even in your elemental forces condescend to equating me with that directionless, purposeless and unpalatable page of mundane history called Ahamefuna
THE HEADING VERY MISLEADING IF NURSES HAVE A BAD ATTITUDE TOWARDS THIER PATIENTS AND WORK HOW DOES IT AFFECT THE PF LOSING BY ELECTIONS. YOU SHOULD HAVE RANTED IN CHINSALI WHERE YOU ACTUALLY SAW A NURSE HARRASSING HER MOTHER WHY TAKE THAT TO WESTERN PROVINCE
This ***** now wants bembas to be In charge all Zambia,idiocy.
. Politicians are simply there to milk resources. Civil servants run govt and once they become dezpodent they leak all your dealings to the press and bring down govts
The work culture has always been rotten. It has just got worse following PF’s leadership example of harassment, intimidation, threats, police brutality, cruelty, petty squabbling, not knowing where to take the nation, insults, disrespect for traditional structures, infighting, jealousies, arrogance, nepotism, corruption, selective justice, favouritism, violence, unprofessional conduct. With a record like this how do you expect civil servants to maintain a healthy working culture? They have to adapt to survive.
A medical doctor in one shift at UTH, Ndola Central Hospital, Arthur Davies, mongu general or Kitwe central hospital sees an average of 200 patients a day. The number is even higher for the nurses. Those in rural areas see the whole village alone and, this politician has the courage to even point a finger at these self sacrificing servants as the cause for PF’s losses in elections, please!!! Only a dedicated human been can remain sane under the conditions that these health workers serve. It’s no wonder the diaspora is made up of a sizeable chunk of individuals from the health profession.
Its true work culture in government hospitals is shamefull.Last week I read in daily paper that a man beat up doctors at Ndola central hospital because his adult son well educated collapsed suddenly at a college where he was a lecturer and was taken to Ndola central hospital but was not attended to and after 2hrs he passed on.It was pathetic.It was arround 11hrs and the young man died about 13hrs.The casual attitude in some hospitals is frightening.We had hope that with PF in government the culture would change but nothing has changed.God help us.
yayayayayayaya
people that need to encourage the already stressed health workers are the ones condeming them. Bwana minister your intended radio programmes to counsel health workers r only going 2 raise more public hostility towards health workrs. use establshd channels
That’s a point.
This issue is a double edged sword.Citizen my collegue,yes some health workers do indeed see entire communities you call villages and are are indeed vey stressed.Some communities tend to have very high expectations-not even expecting such health workers to take a break and collect their salaries from the boma- and unnecessary demands such as no deliveries by a male staff when all that health cetre has is ONE MALE MIDWIFE. However the example you have give of UTH,Ndola Central and Kitwe Central is a bit off the mark.All 3 hospitals have a better HR situation.At UTH for instance,doctors are organised in units and there are at least 5 doctors in one unit.So why should there be only one doctor when that unit is on call?The rest are where ?Now patients relatives getting mad at health workers…
Now patients’ relatives getting mad at health workers is sometimes acceptable eg when staff show uncaring attitudes.I still consider it as one of the worst forms of hypocrisy we have in Zambia.Some of these people beating up health workers for bad attitudes hold public offices themselves and you would be appalled at their own behavior in these offices….Late reporting and early knock off,misplacing files deliberately.Wilful absentism etc.yES ,health is unique but health workers’ bad attitudes are a reflection of the Zambian work culture in general.Good and ethical Zambian workers,please forgive my generalisations ….and I know that a good and ethical worker himself/herself would not go to an extent of beating a health worker no matter the provocation!!!
Is the so called minister insane or wat? Only if u ve workd as a health personel both in rural &urban, only God knows go ahead with yo radio sensitisation and start preparing 4 yo children 2 cum and work, do u knw dat we re capable of goin on strike countrywide and if u try 2 fire us, u can try 2 employ the unemployd but can not fil the whole country by then yo mother would ve bin dead and other innocent souls. Now i know that u re the same pipo who re making relatives of the patients 2 be so sturbon and not wanting 2 follow certain instructions, u knw wat u ve not yet lost there z more 2cum.