Authorities at the Ghana Health Service (GHS) are frustrated at the growing number of health professionals, especially nurses, leaving for greener pastures abroad.

In the Ashanti region alone, over 300 nurses have vacated their posts in the first quarter of this year- 2013.

Though the Service is yet to conclude an audit of the exodus, officials say an overwhelming number of skilled nurses have left the shores of Ghana.

JoyNews looked into the rising brain drain in the health sector and how it is impacting healthcare delivery.

In an interview with the Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Emmanuel Tenkorang lamented the situation.

https://myjoyonline.com/gma-unhappy-with-exodus-of-nurses-calls-on-government-to-act-urgently

“Now it is close to about 10 a day because up to about the first quarter we’ve lost about 304 nurses who have requested for leave without pay for various reasons. Meanwhile, most of the reason is that they want to travel the outside the country,” he said.

The situation has left some facilities with few staff to manage critical units such as maternity, mental health, surgical wards and theatres.

In a related development, stakeholders in the health sector are urging the government to prioritise the demands of healthcare professionals to improve their conditions of service.

This is coming up as the Health Minister, Kwaku Agyemang-Manu last month expressed concern about the exodus of mental health nurses from the Pantang Hospital.

Some health professionals leaving the country have cited poor working conditions in Ghana as the reason.

https://myjoyonline.com/patients-in-danger-as-nurses-head-for-nhs-in-uk-medics/

Their reason is also contained in a recent UNPD report on Ghana’s health care system titled “Vulnerability Assessment On The Threats Of Violent Extremism And Radicalization In Northern Regions Of Ghana.”

Meanwhile, speaking in an interview on The Probe, the Presidential Advisor on Health, Dr. Nsiah Asare refuted some of these assertions stating that the exodus can largely be attributed to the doctors’ search for better environments for specialty training.

“Doctors, for example, don’t just go out there to go and work because of money. Every young doctor which I have been one of them wants to be a specialist,” he said.