By Michelle Marion Apio
The Uganda Medical Association is currently deliberating on the appropriateness of whether to let the interns go work for the shillings one million while continuing negotiations to potentially revert to the originally agreed-upon amount.
In response to the recent deployment of medical interns in Uganda, the Secretary General of the Uganda Medical Association, Dr. Herbert Luswata, has expressed his satisfaction that the government has taken into account the welfare of the interns by providing a net allowance of shs 1 million. He says this decision prevents the potential ethical issues of interns seeking financial support from patients, which could harm the community.
"We are happy that the discussion shifted from non payment for internship to at least getting shs 1 million for a month because we were very worried pushing a doctor , nurse pharmacist with a degree to the hospital with zero pay," Dr. Luswata states.
However, Dr. Luswata highlights that the Uganda Medical Association is currently in discussions with all doctors to determine the best course of action regarding the interns' allowance.
"Today evening we are having a general meeting with all the doctors we are going to discuss if this is very appropriate for us to now say let the interns go and work as we continue with the negotiation and see if we can get them back to the shs 2.5 million," he states.
Dr Luswata says that, "One of the things we noticed was a statement that they are allocating shs 1 million because it is what they have in the budget, this shows it's because of the financial constraints not because of policy."
He says the outcome of these discussions will shape their next steps.
Despite these concerns, Dr. Luswata expresses confidence in President Museveni's approach, believing that once directives are established, they are unlikely to be changed.
He emphasizes the importance of fair compensation for healthcare professionals, particularly during internships, to ensure quality healthcare delivery without compromising patient safety.
Pre-medical Interns have been home for months without being deployed to do their internship, a prerequisite for their certification.
Despite being at school for a longer duration, medical students have to do a mandatory one year internship without which, their degree is rendered useless. This explains their current frustration with their delayed deployment.
The ministry of health had excused self by claiming there are no adequate funds to facilitate new medical interns thus their delayed deployment.
