TTH health workers call off strike

Health professionals at the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) have called off their strike following the intervention of some important leaders including chiefs in the Northern Region.

The strike was as a result of an attack on the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the hospital on Monday, 13 August 2018.

Meanwhile, the leader of the pro-NPP vigilante group which carried out the attack, has issued an apology for their misconduct.

In a letter addressed to the CEO of TTH, Dr David Kolbilla, dated 16 August 2018 and copied to the Regional Security Council (RCC) of the Northern Region, the leader of the group, who is currently in police custody, stated: “I, Alhaji Baba Alhassan, spokesperson for the Coalition of Youth Groups in Tamale, wish to render an unqualified apology to the CEO of the Tamale Teaching Hospital, doctors and all categories of health and administrative staff of the institution, patients and the entire population of the region, for the inconvenience our action on the Tamale Teaching Hospital has caused them”.

According to him, “Matters of the TTH must be of great concern to every citizen of this region since it is the biggest referral centre and the only hub for health delivery and learning”.

“We will also use this opportunity to call on authorities to take the matters of the TTH very seriously since there are some evidence of improper management of the facility.

“We appeal to the government to expedite action in the appointment of the board of the hospital to help in the smooth running of the facility,” he added in the letter as he reiterated that they are “deeply sorry for our actions”.

In a related development, Health Minister Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, will visit the region on Friday, 17 August 2018, to deal with challenges in relation to the development.

The youth, who attacked the hospital, accused the CEO of adopting a habit of issuing threats to staff, engaging in procurement breaches and neglecting the purchase of key hospital consumables such as examination gloves, needles and syringes, among others.

They also alleged that under Dr Kolbilla’s watch, the Tamale Teaching Hospital keeps deteriorating.

More patients continue to be turned away as health workers in the hospital remain on strike over the attack on the hospital.

Source: Ghana/ClassFMonline.com