The government is appealing to retired nurses and midwives to return to the wards following the ongoing strike by the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA).
The Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, is calling on these retired professionals to offer their services to help alleviate the suffering of the affected public while the government negotiates with the striking association.
At a press briefing on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, he said the Ministry has taken steps to mitigate the challenges patients are facing, including publishing a list of facilities where the public can seek healthcare in the meantime.
“While working round the clock to resolve the impasse, the Ministry of Health has taken the following steps to mitigate the suffering of Ghanaian patients unduly affected by the strike:
i.The Ministry will in the next few hours publish a comprehensive list of facilities to complement facilities where nursing services are lacking and where patients can seek healthcare.
ii.Given the urgency of the situation and suffering of patients, government appeals to public-spirited, retired nurses and midwives to volunteer their services for a brief period pending the resolution of this impasse,” he pleaded.
The Minister also expressed “deep appreciation to practicing nurses who have opted to remain at post to help suffering patients and urge others to show similar fellow-feeling and assist our ailing compatriots even as efforts are made to address their concerns.”
The appeal follows the nationwide strike by the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) over their conditions of service.
The Ministry of Health had called for an emergency meeting with the leadership on Monday, June 9, but didn’t materialise.
The strike is still ongoing after the government’s earlier request to postpone implementing the nurses’ conditions of service until 2026, an offer the GRNMA rejected outright.
Speaking to journalists after a closed-door meeting on Monday, Vice President of the GRNMA, Samuel Alagkora Akologo, expressed disappointment, revealing that government officials cited budgetary constraints as the reason for the delay.
“We were told there was no budget provision for our demands. These conditions of service were submitted in January, and we expected them to be factored into this year’s budget,” he said.
Mr Akologo noted that the proposal to defer implementation was an attempt to reset the conditions of service calendar and avoid paying arrears.
“They wanted to set the conditions of the service calendar so that it will be like we have just renegotiated, so that the idea of arrears will not come in. This is not fair,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Minister has disclosed that the Finance Ministry and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) to lead the charge in developing a roadmap to help the implementation of the conditions of service.
“Accordingly, Government has directed the Ministry of Finance and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission to, as a matter of urgency, lead the development of a roadmap to ensure a smooth implementation of the process,” he stated.
