Physician Assistants end strike

The one-day strike by Physician Assistants (PAs) to demand the release of their colleague from prison has been called off.

It follows the granting of bail to Mr Simon Takrama from prison custody by a Koforidua High Court.

The court, presided over by Mrs Cecilia Naa Shormey Davis, on Tuesday granted him GH¢20,000 bail with two sureties.

Mr Takrama was arrested alongside one Mr James Yeboah, a retired Disease Control Officer, who administered Benzathine Penicillin which led to the death of the patients.

The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), in its preliminary investigations, indicated that the drugs might have been contaminated.

The incarceration of Mr Takrama led to a sit-down strike by the Ghana Physician Assistants Association (GPAA) in the Eastern Region.

The strike was scaled-up to the national level last Monday when the GPAA subsequently declared a nationwide sit-down strike.

Return to work

They cited the fact that the Ghana Health Service (GHS) identified Mr Yeboah as the one who administered the contaminated injections to the patients, leading to the deaths.

The President of the Association, Alhaji Chief Imoro Bandana II, after the court hearing, called off the strike at a press conference in Koforidua.

He directed all 1,803 PAs across the country to return to work today.

Alhaji Bandana said the leadership of the association would continue to engage the Ministry of Health (MoH), the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and its other agencies on the way forward.

However, he sent a word of caution to the government and its agencies that the association would not hesitate to resort to another round of strike if efforts were not made to resolve the numerous issues presented to the MoH over the years.

Concerns

He enumerated some of their concerns to include the job description for PAs, PA interns allowance, condition of service, appointment of PAs as sub-district heads, saying that should emanate from the GHS Council and must contain all benefits due a sub-district head.