IPNews-Monrovia, Liberia 2017-Health Minister Dr. Bernice Dahn has disclosed that the Liberian Government will begin the prosecution of any health worker or group of health workers culpable of causing the death of patients at health facilities in Liberia.
Dr. Dahnsaid the government will not allow health workers to continuously cause the death of patients at health facilities across the country whereas the government was making tremendous strides in at improving the human capacity of health workers across Liberia.
The quiet-talking Health Minister revealed that the government through the ministry of Health has established Liberia Medical and Dental Council (LDMC) to deal with mal-practices of health workers.
“The Ministry Will now send health workers who are found culpable of patients’ death and other mal-practices to the Ministry of Justice for prosecution.” Dr. Dahn indicated.
Minister Dahn spoke last Friday at the graduation exercise of Liberia Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) Intermediate Cohort 1 in Paynesville, near Monrovia.
Warning on the attitude of some health workers, Dr. Dahn caution health workers that were in the practice of withholding health data in the name of making demands should discontinue as the Ministry of health will vigorously deal with anyone caught in such practices.
“No health worker has the right to withhold any health data, thereby endangering the lives of the people. “If withholding of data cause one outbreak, you will face the law; we have to stop some of the things that you are blaming government for; anyone who causes the death of any patient will pay for it,” Dr. Dahn warned.
Minister Dahn further said some of the things health workers are blaming government for were caused by them.
She recalled the Ebola crisis when some health workers who were receiving incentives from the Liberian Government chose to leave it for the World Health Organization’s (WHO) incentives.
Dr. Dahn explained that after WHO closed the program, those health workers are no longer receiving incentives and want to blame government for their plight which was very unacceptable.
The Health Minister said the process of getting on government payroll is difficult; as such, those in this category have to be patience because they caused it and warned that the Ministry will not tolerate any attitude from health workers that will undermine the health sector.
