Health workers in Namisindwa District have been accused of hiring volunteers to perform their duties while they remain away from their workstations, raising concerns over the quality and safety of healthcare in public facilities. The allegations were made by the State House Health Monitoring Unit following a 10-day monitoring exercise in the district, which found some health workers spending only a fraction of their scheduled working time at their duty stations.
Dr Elijah Semaganda, Assistant Director at the State House Health Monitoring Unit, said some facility in-charges had worked for only a few days each month, while others had reportedly been absent for prolonged periods. “Some of them, in a period of six months, have worked for a period of one week. Several facility in-charges work on average four days a whole month,” Semaganda said.
The monitoring team, comprising medical doctors, pharmacists, financial auditors and monitoring and evaluation officers, visited several health facilities after receiving complaints through the health monitoring dashboard about poor delivery of basic health services in the district. The team said some absent health workers had allegedly recruited volunteers to take over their duties, but the qualifications and professional licences of some of those volunteers could not be established.
Semaganda said the arrangement creates risks for patients, particularly where volunteers are allowed to handle medicines and perform duties reserved for qualified health workers. “At Sono, we found a volunteer who was accessing the medicines store, and he was stealing medicines. When he saw our team, he took off, abandoning his motorcycle, which we impounded, and investigations into that are ongoing,” he said.
The monitoring unit linked the use of volunteers to the wider problem of absenteeism and weak supervision at health facilities. Semaganda also raised concerns over the management of public resources, alleging that some facility managers continued to access public funds despite spending little time at their duty stations. “An in-charge takes the whole PHC money and is not even at work,” he said.
The findings come as the government continues to invest in improving the welfare of health workers through salary enhancements intended to motivate them to provide better services. The monitoring unit said improving attendance, strengthening supervision and ensuring that only qualified and licensed personnel provide health services would be critical to improving healthcare delivery in the district.
Namisindwa Chief Administrative Officer Joseph Lomongin said the district administration would take action against health workers who fail to report to their duty stations and neglect their responsibilities. Lomongin, who assumed office about two months ago, said he was still familiarising himself with the district but would address absenteeism after completing his assessment of the situation.
Namisindwa District Council Chairperson Emma Bwayo also warned health workers against neglecting their responsibilities, urging those unwilling to work to leave their positions. “Those who are not ready to work should quit and allow those who are willing to work to apply for the positions,” Bwayo said. He said he would not tolerate absenteeism and negligence during his tenure, stressing that public servants have an obligation to serve the people-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
