By Kedi Rogers
"No 2.5 million for intern Doctor, No internship"
As Uganda marks its 59th independence (UHURU) from colonial rule, It's NO Uhuru for Ugandan Doctors and medical interns!
As per the collective bargaining agreement(CBA), on the 30th September 2019 in a letter PO/12 (Annex 2) in which you directed that the pay of medical workers be increased and to be specific an entry-level medical officer be paid a monthly salary of 5 million Ugandan shillings and a senior consultant 17 million shillings monthly! So will other cadres' pay be increased accordingly!
Over the past several months, you have continuously repeated this directive in several of your public addresses but till today nothing has been implemented!
The conditions of service of the intern Doctors, Nurses, midwives pharmacists are in a vegetative state where many are struggling to find accommodation, many have ended up residing in slums sleeping in manyattas, end up being attacked by gangs while going or getting back from duty! low allowances that cannot cater to their welfare!
Imagine an intern doctor wearing a torn shirt with a clinical coat on top written Doctor!? Yawning the whole day because they have nothing to eat even when supposed to work 24/7. An intern is a human being too. Well saving someone's life is very important but an intern Dr is someone as well!
Imagine renting a room of 200k per month, eating lunch of 5k each day in a month, clothing and other welfare and most importantly the community takes the doctor's profession to be able to provide for as many people! A lot of pressure from relatives and then boom and at the end of the month you are expected to get 750k?? Which 750k even comes every three months, honestly speaking how does an intern manage to survive all these three months??
In fact, many of the Ugandan interns are just surviving but not living! The idea is that they should be able to live and not just gamble for a daily living!
On the 1st of June 2021, the Uganda medical association(UMA) Together with the federation of Uganda medical interns(FUMI) Under the leadership of Dr. Nabwire Mary and Dr. Faith Nabushawo Met you in Entebbe where you directed that a medical intern Doctor be paid half of what a medical Doctor earns! That means an intern Doctor should earn 2.5 million Uganda shillings which would be started by 1st July 2021, but to date, nothing has been done or implemented by the ministry of health or ministry of finance!
On the 6th of August 2021, UMA issued a letter about their intentions of holding an industrial action in case the presidential directive is not implemented, but to our surprise, every concerned party is acting like they have not seen any notice of industrial action! I will assure you that lives will be lost come that time because it will be a massive industrial action this time around!
"No 2.5million, No internship" is a slogan getting popular all over prospective interns who are soon replacing the current interns whose time is expiring! Here the intention is that if the 2.5million pay for an intern Doctor plus the respective pay rise for intern nurses, midwives, and pharmacists is NOT implemented, no one will enroll for an internship until the presidential directive of a pay rise is implemented! Trust me it will be a massive blow to the health sector if these young doctors don't turn up for internships because they are a very strong force of work especially in the regional referral hospital
Being a doctor is a noble profession but there is no novelty in poverty!
I would humbly appeal to you Mr president your powers invested in you help us follow up on this issue if save lives are to be saved come that period of Mfecane!
Lastly, It would be a great pleasure meeting you concerning this matter!
Thank you!
For GOD AND MY COUNTRY!
Dr.KEDI ROGGERS
