Dr David Tenkorang-Twum, the General Secretary of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), has urged the Government to reintroduce the car waiver system for members of the Association to curb the exodus of nurses.
He said the members continued to leave the country in search of jobs in the United Kingdom, Canada, and United States of America, among others.
Dr Tenkorang-Twum said one of the major initiatives to check the exodus of nurses could be the car waiver that members used to enjoy in the past.
He made the suggestion in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at the inauguration of Upper East Regional GRNMA Executive at Pusu-Namongo in the Talensi District of the Upper
He recalled that in 2002, there was an exodus of nurses and midwives from the country, and the President at the time, invited the Association’s leadership to find solutions to the problem, and car waiver was one of the main incentives used to retain them.
“If the government will restore the car waiver back for us, nurses and midwives, and for that matter other health workers, it can reduce the attrition rate,” he said.
He said car waiver was a major thing because every nurse and midwife now wants to drive a car, as it was no longer a luxury but a necessity for people to own a car for easier and safer commuting.
The General Secretary said although some nurses and midwives would still opt to leave the country after the reintroduction of the car waiver and other incentives, the attrition would be minimised.
“People are travelling basically because of housing, cars and the like. Once a nurse or midwife completes school and has a car, the person can save enough money to build a house, and the urgency to travel will be minimised,” he said.
He said, apart from the waiver, if the government improved the condition of service, including the allowances of the Association’s members, nurses and midwives would stay and work to improve healthcare delivery.