The Northern Regional Director of Health Services, Dr IIias Sory has expressed grave concern about the refusal of some medical doctors to accept posting to the region. The Daily Graphic newspaper quotes him as saying that for the past two years, no doctor had accepted posting to the region because those who were transferred to the area simply refused to go. He described the prevailing situation as very unfortunate and pathetic, noting that “while some hospitals in Accra have many doctors, the entire Northern region had only 30 Ghanaian doctors. The director was speaking at a performance review workshop of the Northern Regional Health Directorate and other stakeholders in the region. Dr Sory further called for the inclusion of the private sector in the training of health professionals to augment those turned out by public sector health training institutions saying that was the only way out in the present circumstance of shortage of personnel in the system. On the eradication of diseases, he cautioned health practitioners not to be complacent but strengthen their respective surveillance systems in their respective districts. “The people will never forgive us if we allow diseases we have succeeded in eradicating over the years to resurface in the communities,” the director lamented. Dr Sory cited the case of yaws, which he said was eradicated from the country in the 1960s but was now resurfacing in some parts of the country. “At the moment, we have succeeded in managing measles but if we relax in our surveillance system, it could re-emerge,” he cautioned. Source: Daily Graphic