Heads of Health Training Institutions hold conference in Bolga

Mr. Alban Sumana Bagbin, Minister of Health, has said the quality of human resource from the country’s health training sector was key to sustainable health delivery in the country.

He said the country needed more quality health professionals to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on Health.

Mr. Bagbin was addressing the Conference of Principals of Health Training Institutions (COHETTI) in Bolgatanga.

The conference had as its theme: “Managing health institutions in contemporary times, the role of the principal”.

The five days scientific session would help the principals to review the activities of COHETTI and map out strategies for the ensuing years.

Mr. Bagbin said though progress was being done on attaining the MDGs, the sector was grappling with inadequate human resource in terms of quality and quantity in health facilities despite the number of people turned out from these health institutions each year.

The health minister said an overwhelming number of health personnel who pass out from the training institutions do not serve in the sector because majority of them used the training as a stepping stone to work in other areas.

“Quality of human resource depended very much on training which made COHETTI an indispensable partner in health care delivery”. He added.

The Minister said the number of personnel coming out of these institutions did not only serve as link between the grassroots but also a core phase in the health care delivery system.

This, according to him, called for refocus to build the capacity of heads and asked them to grasp the many opportunities available to update their knowledge to be able to deliver their mandate in these contemporary times.

He said even though some gains were made in achieving some of the MDGS, there was need to work hard on targets concerning maternal mortality and access to reproductive health services.

He said any laxity on the part of the health provider endangers the lives of many Ghanaians and appealed to the principals to strive and inculcate in their students through the academic curriculum discipline, selflessness and professionalism to bring about revolution in the sector.

This, he said, was needed to transform the health sector to meet the MDGs on health.

Mr. Bagbin said the profession was unique and tasked the heads not to allow people who perceived it as stepping stone to destroy it.

Dr. John Koku Awoonor-Williams, Upper East Regional Director of Health, lamented the continuous refusal of health personnel to come and work in the region.

Dr. Awoonor-Williams said eight doctors posted to the region have not reported while only two nurses had reported to the region after 100 nurses had been transferred from the national level.

He said some nurses even went on transfer to other regions without release letters and lamented the spate of indiscipline including students getting pregnant during training as well as needless demands by some of them to be posted to places of their choice after completion.

Mr. James Yambor, outgoing chairman of COHETTI, said COHETTI started in 2006 with 66 members.

He said the unit had a vision of ensuring that all persons in Ghana lived healthy lives with a mission to providing competent health personnel to work in the country’s health facilities.

He thanked the ministry of health for making the scientific session come to fruition.