Maravi

Nurses are overstretched - NGOCC

Nurses are overstretched - NGOCC
By Moses Kuwema
Tue 17 May 2011, 04:00 CAT

NURSES in the country are overstretched and this has resulted in frustrations during the course of their duties, observes NGOCC.

In an interview, Non-Governmental Organisation Coordinating Council board chairperson Beatrice Grillo said because of the burden that the nurses had of taking care of too many patients at the same time, they could not discharge their duties effectively.

“Every health centre needs nurses to give medication to patients in the absence of the doctors because patients are difficult people to handle and they need nurses to be there for them but because of this tremendous pressure that falls on them, you don't expect them to give proper care.

No wonder the nursing system has broken down in the country because when you go to clinics and hospitals, you find a lot of people at the bed sides taking care of their patients,” Grillo said.

She said this trend where relatives were taking care of patients was likely to impact negatively on the country’s economy as people were forced to spend most of their time at the hospitals.

She said more resources needed to be given to the health sector in order to attract more nurses that had left the country for greener pastures.

“The approval of the K21.1 billion supplementary budget for administrative and operational costs of mobile hospitals only goes to show that the government's priorities are misplaced because this money could have been used to see to it that clinics and hospitals have adequate personnel,” Grillo said.

And the NGOCC says the accommodating of both male and female nurses in the same ward at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) filter clinic is a violation of patients' human rights.

Commenting on the accommodation crisis that had hit the filter clinic at the country’s largest hospital, where male and female patients were sharing the same ward due to insufficient space, Grillo called on the government to immediately address the situation, as it was not only conducive to patients but the general public as well.

“We need more wards at the UTH and the K21.1 billion supplementary budget for administrative and operational costs of mobile hospitals is not a priority for now and we appeal to the Minister of Health to address the situation at UTH,” said Grillo.

Labels: NGOCC, NURSES

posted by MrK @ 4:48 PM