Medical pre-interns have called on the government to immediately withdraw the National Education and Training for Health (NET) Policy, arguing that its implementation could compromise patient safety, worsen interns' welfare and disrupt healthcare delivery.
Addressing a press conference in Kampala, the President of the Medical Pre-Interns, Dr Silver Ssegonga, said members of the 2026 cohort are concerned about delays by the Ministry of Health in organising this year's internship programme, which is expected to begin in August.
Ssegonga said the NET Policy, introduced jointly by the Ministries of Health and Education and Sports in 2025, proposes extending medical training by an additional year while removing internship allowances, proposals he said have been widely opposed by medical graduates.
"Medical interns are not students. We are fully qualified, graduated medical doctors, dental surgeons, pharmacists, nurses and midwives. Assigning intern responsibilities to students directly jeopardises patient safety and threatens the country's healthcare system," he said.
The pre-interns urged the Ministries of Health and Education and Sports to suspend the policy and conduct a time-bound review involving universities, professional bodies and other stakeholders before implementing any reforms.
They also called on the government to implement President Yoweri Museveni's 2021 directive on internship allowances, saying the current facilitation no longer reflects the rising cost of living.
According to Ssegonga, the pre-interns are seeking a monthly allowance of Shs4 million, which they said would be equivalent to 75 percent of a medical officer's salary, compared to the Shs2.5 million provided for under the 2021 directive.
He said many medical interns work shifts lasting more than 36 hours while relying entirely on internship allowances to meet the costs of accommodation, transport, meals and other necessities.
Ssegonga added that delayed quarterly payments have left many interns struggling financially.
He cited a survey by the Federation of Uganda Medical Interns which found that 83 percent of interns borrow money at high interest rates while waiting for government payments.
The pre-interns also urged the Ministry of Health to deploy all eligible medical graduates for the 2026 internship programme, arguing that interns are essential to service delivery in public health facilities operating with severe staffing shortages.
They said many government health facilities are functioning at only about 30 percent staffing capacity, making interns a critical part of the country's healthcare workforce.
The group's demands include the withdrawal and review of the NET Policy, deployment of all eligible 2026 pre-interns, restoration and enhancement of internship allowances to Shs4 million per month, and payment of the allowances on a monthly rather than quarterly basis.
