The Luwero District Administration has recently imposed a ban on medical trainees engaging in the handling and administration of treatments to patients in health centers without the direct supervision of authorized personnel.
Each year, Luwero district accommodates over 200 medical students from various institutions for practical training at health centers IIIs, IVs, and Luwero hospital.
The program for this year commenced on January 2, 2024, encompassing both medical students and other interns within local governments.
Despite this, concerns have surfaced regarding the frequent absence of health workers, leaving patients attended to by trainees still in the process of acquiring skills.
A notice issued on December 27, 2023, by Bernard Okello, the Luwero District Human Resource Officer acting on behalf of the Chief Administrative Officer, addressed this issue.
Okello expressed the administration’s disapproval of the practice, declaring that trainees are strictly forbidden from administering treatment or handling patients at any health center without the presence and guidance of their respective supervisors.
Furthermore, reports have surfaced indicating that some trainees engage in extortion or are being utilized by health workers to extort money from patients, constituting an illegal practice.
Okello sternly warned that any trainee caught handling patients without supervision, participating in extortion, or pilfering government-allocated drugs would be immediately expelled from the program.
Moreover, the errant individual would be turned over to the police to face criminal charges. Okello urged residents to report any trainees involved in misconduct to the District Health Officer for prompt action.
Dr. Innocent Nkonwa, the Luwero District Health Officer, emphasized the importance of medical ethics that trainees are taught to adhere to. Any failure to comply with these ethics would result in expulsion.
“We shall not tolerate any student who is non-compliant to the ethics because this may result in serious cases, for example, if they misdiagnose the patient. We are always reminding them about the ethics, and they should abide by them as medical students,” said Nkonwa.
This notice was distributed to the LCV Chairperson, Resident District Commissioner, and heads of departments.
In 2021, Luwero district health department implemented fingerprint time and attendance devices across government health centers to combat rampant absenteeism.
The district also threatened to suspend salaries for health workers found absent from work for over 30 days without notifying their supervisors, breaching sections of Uganda Public Service Standing Orders.
Despite these measures, absenteeism continues to persist in health centers, with health workers leaving the majority of tasks to trainees while they engage in secondary employment.