Senior House Officers lay down work tools over delayed allowance pay

18 February 2023, 3:51 pm

Byamukama Alozious > byamukamaalozious1993@gmail.com

Senior House Officers who are undergoing Postgraduate work-study training to become specialists in various specialties of medicine have laid down tools over delayed pay from Government since august 2022. According to Senior House Officers (SHOs) say have not been paid their allowances since November 2022 with some as far as October 2022. It has to be noted that these allowances came after years of protracted negotiations, which resulted in a presidential directive to have SHOs paid an allowance every month.

While addressing the press conference at Mulago Guest House, Dr. Robert Lubega who is the Chief of Resident at Makerere University College of Health Sciences says they have laid their tools to remind the Government of its promise and for the well of Ugandans. He adds that this action will not be taken lightly because they want fair treatment and adequate compensation so that they can be able to pay their daily bills, including food, rent, and transport and day to day needs

In 2016 President Yoweri  Museveni started that to the act of Senior House Officers  providing a vital workforce without any financial compensation is Modern day slavery, This led to a meeting between the Government of Uganda, Uganda Medical Association and Federation of Uganda Medical Interns which was chaired by the Hon. Dr. Chris Baryomunsi, the Minister of ICT and National Guidance on Thursday 17th, December, 2021, and  resolved that Senior House Officers (Clinical Postgraduate Students) would be paid an allowance of shs.2,500,000 per month with effect from 1st July 2021 of which it has not been fully fulfilled Resources for

The Health Strategic for Plan 2020-2030, indicate that, the vacancy rate for specialist for doctors is 70% and only 30% is the only available in public health facilities.

According to an SHO Policy brief research by Dr. Ekwaro Obuku in 2016, SHOs provide over 63% of the hospitals doctor’s workforce at Mulago & Mbarara Referral Hospitals which was estimated at 1,101,311 patients–doctor consultations & treatment in 2014, (25,000 were childbirths). As of today, we have a total of 692 SHOs and fellows based in Mulago NRH, Kawempe RRH, Kiruddu NRH, Mbarara RRH, Kabale RRH and Mbale RRH. These SHOs were admitted under Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Kabale University, Busitema University and others

Senior House Officer have also told media that their day starts at 6.00 am with ward rounds, many head to theatre and perform lifesaving procedures on patients that they had to prepare the previous day then Evening ward rounds follow with a section doing overnight call duty on a rotational basis which is tiresome .