The Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) has said the Mahama administration’s cancellation of trainee allowances for nurses and midwives was a senseless and irrational decision.
The allowance regime was just restored by the Akufo-Addo government.
It will see over 58,000 trainee nurses and midwives in various public nursing and midwifery training colleges (NMTC’s) and a little over 45,000 teacher trainees in 41 public colleges of education, receive over GHS400.00 every month from the Students Loan Trust Fund (SLTF) while in school.
Following the restoration, Greater Accra PRO of GRNMA, Douglas Adu-Fokuo, indicated in a press statement released on Wednesday, 11 October that: “It is very unfortunate to hear people like Solomon Nkansah [Communications Director of the National Democratic Congress], saying: ‘Restoration of trainee allowances is needless’. Well that is democracy, so permit me to say: ‘The cancelation of trainees’ allowances is the ever-senseless decision on earth’”.
“I advise my brother, Solomon Nkansah to get a copy of the research work by GRNMA and study it carefully before making such utterances. If trainees allowance is needless, why did the previous government attempt to deceive the trainees by paying them that deceitful coins on table top as allowance, two days before election day?” he questioned.
Expressing gratitude to the current government for restoring the allowance, the association advised nurse and midwife trainees to put in their utmost best and improve on their attitude towards work whenever they are on clinical rotation, adding: “As it is the responsibility of government to make its citizens comfortable, it is also our responsibility to improve on our contribution to healthcare services”.
Below is the full statement:
STATEMENT TO THE MEDIA
Restoration of Nurse/Midwife Trainees Allowances, A sensible decision by government…
Nurse /Midwife Trainees should improve on attitude towards work during clinical rotations to justify the restoration of allowance…
This period should be a happy moment for all trainees and parents. The need for the restoration of allowance for trainees has been justified by the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association severally. It is very unfortunate that the previous government was not ready to take a critical look at the research the association submitted to guide them to make a good decision by restoring the allowance.
Would love to take the opportunity to thank President Nana Addo, the Vice President Dr Bawumia, the Minister for Health and his deputies for fulfilling their promise. Much gratitude to the National Executives of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association, the National Executives of the Ghana Nurse Midwife Trainees Association, for their contribution to the successful restoration of the allowance. I call on the Ministry of Health and the government to communicate effectively to the public on the “allowances without bonding” and implications on employment. It is my hope that unemployed nurses will soon be employed and measures will be put in place to make unemployment among Nurses and delayed salaries and arrears a thing of the past.
I advise the nurse/ midwife trainees to put their utmost best and improve on their attitude towards work whenever they are on clinical rotations. As it the responsibility of government to make its citizens comfortable, it is also our responsibility to improve on our contribution to healthcare services.
It is very unfortunate to hear people like Solomon Nkansah saying “restoration of Trainees allowances is needless “. Well that is democracy, so permit me to say “the cancelation of trainees’ allowances is the ever senseless decision on earth”.
I advise my brother, Solomon Nkansah to get a copy of the research work by GRNMA and study it carefully before making such utterances. If trainees allowance is needless, why did the previous government attempt to deceive the trainees by paying them that deceitful coins on table top as allowance, two days before election day?
Let us all be responsible citizens and welcome good policies like trainees allowance and free SHS, as we reject bad policies like toll levy.
—Signed—
Douglas Adu-Fokuo
PRO, Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association,
Greater Accra
(adufokuodouglas@gmail.com