Nurses at the Manhyia Government Hospital in the Kumasi Metropolis of the Ashanti Region, began their strike action in protest of the removal of the Ashanti Regional Director of the National Service Scheme (NSS), Alex Opoku-Mensah, today, Friday, 2 December 2022.

 The strike action by the Nurses, has therefore left scores of patients stranded at the hospital.

A visit to the hospital by Class FM’s Ashanti Regional Correspondent, Elisha Adarkwah, Friday, 2 December 2022, saw scores of patients sitting unattended to.

Some of the patients pleaded with the Nurses to rescind their decision and come back to work.

A female patient said: “This should not be a reason for sacking someone from their job. Everyone makes mistakes, they must settle this amicably. I plead with the nurses, let’s let go, we all have kids so let it go so that the work can continue.

“The man did not do well, even an adult can make mistakes at work, but we won’t go and bring their mother or father, so we plead with the nurses, to let go and come back to work. They should forgive and come and attend to patients.”

A male patient also appealed “to the nurses to come back, the man has acknowledged he did not speak well, please forgive and come and attend to patients, we plead with you.”

Meanwhile the District Chairperson for the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwifeves Association Joseph Obeng Tuffour, was at the hospital to ensure all Nurses complied with the decision to strike.

He explained that: “We’re here this morning to make sure our strike action is just as we planned. As you can all see, it’s just as we planned. No nurse or midwife is working in the quest that we want Mr Alex Opoku-Mensah to be relieved of his duty.”

He described the utterances of the NSS director as unfit for public office.

“That is all that we’re pleading for, we’re just asking the government that he should listen to our plea.

“Because this is a person who occupies such a high position and then made certain comments that are unfortunate so for our people to work under this man, it is something that we think will not be helpful.”

He noted that they do not want Mr Opoku-Mensah relieved of his duties, only to be reassigned to anything Nursing and Midwifery-related again.

“We don’t want him anywhere near the nursing and midwifery profession so I think they can just place him somewhere else, that what we’re asking, he doesn’t even deserve to occupy any public office because of his utterances. They’re very unfortunate.” 

For failing to sack the Ashanti Regional Director of the NSS, nurses at the Manhyia government Hospital  have begun a sit-down strike.

The Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) spearheading the strike said it will be escalated on 6 December where all nurses in the region will remain at home if the NSS regional Director, is still at post.

The Association in a statement further said there will be a nationwide strike of nurses by Friday, 9 November 2022, if their demand is not met.

Mr Opoku-Mensah has been suspended by the management of the NSS pending investigations but the GRNMA is unsatisfied.

They want him sacked from office for barging into the Manhyia Government Hospital to insult a nurse on duty.

Mr Opoku-Mensah went to the hospital to fight the nurse on behalf of his daughter after the nurse had questioned the house officer on an issue.

The nurse is believed to have used her own phone to call Mr Opoku-Mensah’s daughter to come to the hospital and log into the E-Health System and update a patient’s prescription order so that the patient is not billed for unissued drugs.

It is not clear how the nurse communicated with Mr Mensah’s daughter on the phone which made her feel disrespected.

Mr Opoku-Mensah then followed his daughter to the hospital and was captured on tape insulting the nurse and threatening to mastermind her removal from the hospital.

He went on further to say his daughter is more intelligent than the said nurse and further threatened to come to the hospital in his daughter’s defence anytime she is intimidated by anyone in the facility. 

The GRNMA said Mr Opoku-Mensah had no right to enter the hospital to abuse a nurse.

The group said as a Regional Director of the NSS, he should have known that the Manhyia District Hospital has management with whom he could have lodged a complaint instead of barging into the facility to attack the nurse.

Meanwhile, Mr Opoku-Mensah has apologised for his action.

In a Facebook post, the embattled Mr Opoku-Mensah said “I understand the disappointment and appreciate the inconvenience my action has caused the general public as well as the Nursing FRATERNITY and Manhyia Hospital.

“This has never been my style but for a genuine reason to mediate a persistent issue between my daughter(Doctor) and a colleague nurse who I as well consider my daughter.

“I do apologise for any mishap and assure all, there shall not be a repetition of such.

“I look forward to maintaining a cordial relationship with any affected person.”