The National Health Commission (NHC) has denied claims made by the General Secretary of the Dominica Public Service Union (DPSU) Thomas Letang, that the changes in the pipeline for the health sector will adversely impact health workers here on island.Since the Government of Dominica, through the NHC, announced that they are in the process of enacting four new pieces of legislation: the Medical Professions Bill, Nursing Bill, Pharmacy Bill and finally, the Dominica Hospitals Authority Bill, the proposed legislation has been under sharp scrutiny by the union’s executive and its members.
Speaking during a press conference recently, the Interim Executive of the NHC, responded to a union comment made by the union which says that benefits such as study leave, sick leave, vacation leave, departmental leave, travelling allowance and security of tenure may be taken away from those who are currently appointed.
“We’ve been having a number of staff meetings over the last two weeks. Those meetings which we are conducting will be department by department and will end by the 15th of October. In those meetings we’ve sought to assure staff- and it is in the legislation- that staff who are currently employed, will not lose any of their benefits,” deputy chair of the NHC, Jennifer Astaphan, explained.
She added, “We’ve made that absolutely clear to staff. This is a process which has been undertaken in several other islands; this is a process that has occurred right here in Dominica, and we have made it really clear that staff would not lose their benefits but it will be preserved and that is embodied in the legislation.”
From the discussion held thus far, the board highlighted that lack of training and certification in the past has been a concern, however, this new legislation addresses this issue.
“The new bill will do exactly that, it will make staff better people,” Astaphan said. “We’ve had nurses leave, and there’s been no objection because that’s the way the world goes, but do you think that if a nurse in another two or three years can show on her CV that she attended a certain number of continuing education [programmes] that that’s not going to enure to her benefit if she goes off to America? She can show that she has additional certification and surely, that cannot be something that is so bad to happen.”
The board says that the sole purpose of several of the recommendations is to bring more accountability of individuals to the health sector.
“This is an institution and a facility that each of us will use, that our mothers, our father, our friends may have used, our children will use; it will not exclude the use by any one of us. We must see it in this light,” . What about all the concerns of the general public? What about the statements that we keep hearing that if you go to this hospital that you are going to die. Do we want to continue that image to the public?” she asked.
The NHC announced recently that it was recommending the removal from the draft hospital bill, clause 32 which made provision for non-appointed health workers to be given three-year contracts, a measure which the union strongly opposed.
According to the executive board, a number of recommendations have been received in writing which they are now in the process of reviewing.
Is Jennifer really suggesting that it is a good thing for us to train nurses to go and work in America. Good luck to them if they do of course but I don’t think that is what we really want but if we only give them a short term contract that is likely what we’re going to achieve. I mean, who is going to look after us? Chinese nurses employed by Chinese subcontractors?
And wasn’t it the PM who indicated that our hospital is a place of last resort. Well, I’m all for improvement but would PM, Jennifer and the Astaphan family use the China Friendship hospital anyway?
If one were to carefully examine recent bills, legislations, pronouncements and actions of the Skerrit led regime, one can easily conclude that these are not done in the best interest of the public but to cement the administration’s stranglehold on power.
It has been touted that this pending legislation is to bring more accountability of individuals to the health sector. REALLY? The government needs to lead by example as transparency and accountability is frowned upon by the current regime. HYPOCRITES!
The nefarious actions and policies of this regime over the years have caused public distrust. The DPSU should play an integral role in any changes that would profoundly affect the tenure and lives of the health workers.
This nocturnal Administration believes in dictation not consultation, in secrecy not transparency, a sure recipe for bad legislation and poor governance.
@ibo France you are no doubt exhausted from making uneducated statements.
I don’t believe such laws should affect the staff, what I don’t understand and please feel free to explain to me, are we in the process of developing qualified nurse’s for the USA. Just to keep the public inform, no matter where you are educated in the Caribbean as a nurse if in the future you move to the USA, one can’t use the Caribbean nursing degree to get a nursing job in the USA, you have to do almost the whole program over, even when your credits are transferred from a credited college from Caribbean, now please explain to me what are the benefits of such a legislation.
Let me see if heath workers gonna sit there and love their PM and party more than themselves. Dca is too political to have this legislation passed. No ands, ifs of buts this will be used to victimize people. Plus, I am darn near certain the hospital is going to be managed by a Chinese Company. So they built the hospital as a gift, and now wants to manage it so they can get their money back. What kind of gift is that?
I give Letang a lot of blows here for being soft and not militant enough but If I was in his place I would call a general strike for ALL healthcare workers until the intended legislation is scrapped and if they don’t strike leave that alone. That way they can never blame him. We too SORT in Dca when it comes to our well being.