Doctors Strike in Ghana, Demand Better Conditions

Ghana’s Medical Association says more doctors working at public hospitals across the country are set to join a strike demanding better working conditions
Doctors Strike in Ghana, Demand Better Conditions
Health alerts regarding people who may have traveled to particular West African countries are posted in the lobby of Bellevue Hospital, Friday, Oct. 24, 2014, in New York. Dr. Craig Spencer, a resident of New York City and a member of Doctors Without Borders, was admitted to Bellevue Thursday and has been diagnosed with Ebola. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
The Associated Press
7/31/2015
Updated:
12/13/2015

ACCRA, Ghana—Ghana’s Medical Association says more doctors working at public hospitals across the country are set to join a strike demanding better working conditions.

Patients in the capital, Accra, lined up on Friday at medical facilities, hoping the strike wouldn’t affect their care.

Ellen Nortey, an 87-year-old who was at an Accra hospital with malaria, said she was told by nurses that the doctors wouldn’t see her. She said the doctors may have a grievance, but sick Ghanaians shouldn’t suffer.

The National Labor Commission, which arbitrates such issues, says the strike is illegal.

The Medical Association has threatened the government with mass resignations over the past few months if their demands were not met. A meeting Wednesday ended in deadlock, and the country’s doctors withdrew outpatient care on Thursday.