THE PLIGHT OF A DEGREE ROTATION NURSE AMIDST THE PANDEMIC Eric Amoako

With a saddened heart, I write this message to the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwifery Association of Ghana (GRNMA) and the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

Over the years, University Nursing students have been treated unfairly pertaining to decision making in the Nursing profession. University Nursing students are neglected when it comes to fighting for allowances.

These students go on to the wards for their clinical placements and in some instances, are allowed to provide their own gloves before they are allowed to work.

Again, diploma nurses who are undertaking their rotation (national service) are paid extra for their services to the health system. The current national service salary received by all personnel is 559.04ghc including graduate nurses and private diploma nurses who are also providing the same services to the Ministry of Health.

On the other hand, government diploma nurses receive 780.00gh each month as their national service allowance. Even though these two groups of nurses provide the same services to the Ministry of Health, in some instances, the degree nurses are expected to provide higher services because of higher academic qualification.

It is with great shock that these nurses are paid less as compared to the other nursing group.

This issue has been reported to the Nursing and Midwifery Council on countless times and the Ministry of Health claim that graduate nurses are under the Ministry of Education and the higher allowance for the government diploma nurses are from the Ministry of Health.
The nurses and midwives have till date, continued to serve the nation despite this sharp descrepancy in rotational allowances, but enough is enough now!

The National Service Scheme amidst this covid-19 Pandemic asked all service personnel to go on a mandatory leave, whereas the Ministry of Health also issued a letter dated 26th March, 2020 that all nurses and midwives who are undertaking their service in various hospitals are to remain at post due to this pandemic and are exempted from the mandatory leave.

The graduate Nurses and Midwives and private diploma nurses are not treated fairly because, financially they are under the Ministry of Education but when it comes to service to the nation, they are under the Ministry of Health. That is highly discriminatory and contradictory for us to accept.

The entire graduate Nurses and Midwives and private diploma national service personnel would want to go by the directives of the National service Scheme. However, they would be in full action and work if their services are paid for just like the other rotation nurses.

Lastly, graduate rotation nurses are still under Ministry of Education as claimed and therefore will not follow any directives issued by Ministry of Health.

In conclusion, until the allowances of these graduate nurses and midwives are increased, there is no way they will be allowed to work under the Ministry of Health.

Eric Amankona
eabrefakyeremaa@gmail.com

NIA SUSPEND IT'S MASS REGISTRATION EXERCISE IN EASTERN REGION, DESPITE CLEARANCE FROM THE COURT.

NATIONAL IDENTIFICATION AUTHORITY

27th March 2020
To All Media Houses
 For immediate release

INDEFINITE SUSPENSION OF MASS REGISTRATION IN THE EASTERN REGION
The National Identification Authority (NIA) announces the indefinite suspension of the mass registration exercise in the Eastern Region until further notice. This decision follows a careful assessment of the registration exercise carried out in the Eastern Region between Wednesday, 4th March 2020 and Friday, 20th March 2020. The decision to suspend the registration follows a careful assessment of the exercise in the region so far. It also takes into account the current trend in the spread of COVID-19 in Ghana since the suspension of the mass registration exercise on Saturday, 21st March 2020, following the service on the NIA of an interlocutory injunction application.
The NIA welcomes the dismissal by the High Court of the interlocutory injunction application and the substantive suit. Nonetheless, NIA will continue to suspend its mass registration operations in the Eastern Region until further notice.
NIA will use the period of suspension to continue with its preparations toward the establishment of its Regional, Municipal and District Offices and arrange for the co-location of its registration services at some of its cognate institutions such as National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) and Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), among other responsibilities.
Meanwhile, NIA will continue to observe developments relating to the management of COVID-19 in Ghana and will determine, at the appropriate time, when and how to resume its mass registration operations.


SGND: ACI. FRANCIS PALMDETI
HEAD, CORPORATE AFFAIRS, NIA

KWAME A+ CONGRATULATE PRESIDENT FOR COVID-19 FIGHT, AND QUIZ HIM ON THE ACTION OF NIA.

Good morning your excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo, president of the republic of Ghana. I want to congratulate you for the hard work you are doing to contain the spread of the coronavirus to save precious Ghanaians lives.

Some of the measures you and your government have put in place is really helping the situation. We thank you.

What some of us don't understand is why the NIA is adamant that it will go on with the Ghana card registration after you placed a ban on all social gathering. These guys are becoming incorrigible and like the chief imam said, must be called to order.

The sad part is that, just this morning we noticed that the attorney general went to your law firm to appoint a lawyer to get the supreme court lift the injunction placed on the Ghana card registration process during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Your excellency, what is going on? The democratic party in the US which has the potential of electing the most powerful man on earth has suspended it's primaries. Why can't this Ghana registration wait?

As Ghanaians obeyed your directives to stay home and joined you in fasting and prayer to fight Covid-19, your attorney general had appointed a lawyer from your law firm to help them get the masses out in their numbers to register Ghana card. Why are we mocking God? With all due respect, what is going on Nana?

The conduct of the NIA and your general and your silence may give credence to the rumours that you are behind the NIA. 

Speak now our president, your people are listening 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾

Source: Kwame A PLUS, Facebook 

FRANKLYN CUJOE IMANI BOSS, NOW CORONA IS BLAME FOR POSTPONING VOTER REGISTRATION

Now Corona is being blamed for "postponing" registration for a new voter register.  My Vice-President for research and development at IMANI, puts it fittingly.."Blaming corona for "postponing" an activity that was simply IMPOSSIBLE to do by April 18th is simply ridiculous! And that we shall see when to do it when health experts advise. They think designing and implementing a full-scale enterprise software system when even custom-specification and contracting have not been done is a joke, huh? So infuriating! "

ME: Never underestimate the power and mind of a determined tax waster. $150m free money, when not yours, is just one of those pitiful leaky basket scenarious. Tragedy of the Commons it is.

CAN WE SURVIVE BY THE NUMBER OF VENTILATORS AVAILABLE FOR GHS IN THIS PANDEMIC?- MICHAEL DABI

This is a ventilator.
A ventilator is a type of equipment that is used in the hospital to assist people in breathing when they are unable to do so themselves. The ventilator is attached to a tube placed in the patient's airway so it can deliver breathes into the lungs of the patient.

In the event of a COVID-19 outbreak in an area, about half of all patients who require intensive care will likely need a ventilator to survive, health experts have said.
USA and other countries have estimated the number of expected cases of COVID-19 in the coming weeks and how many ventilators they have available as a nation.

Eventually, individuals and organizations have ordered for the ventilator production company to produce more to offset the deficit and meet the intended demand.

In Ghana, findings have it that we have a woefully inadequate number of ventilators in our hospitals. How do we survive this when the number of cases increase and our hospitals are overwhelmed with patients?

Can we call on government, organisations, churches and individuals, to help with the purchase of ventilators to use in the event that cases flood our hospitals. This may be a step in the right direction which may save a family member.

NB: In the wake of the pandemic, an old priest in an Italian hospital gave up his ventilator so that a younger man could stay alive.
*Please anyone with actual figures on the number of ventilators in our Ghanaian hospitals can help.

Source: Michael Dabi, Facebook