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The junior doctors undergoing houseman-ship in the various health facilities in the country say they will be rendered redundant if medical officers resign from the public service.

Spokesperson for the junior doctors, Dr Nana Kissi Attafah warned, if members of the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) -activate a full-blown strike, it will bring dire consequence on the nation’s health sector. Members of the GMA have been on partial strike for a week and have threatened to resign en masse if no agreement is reached over their conditions of service. Dr. Attafah said if the senior doctors resign, junior house officers will not be qualified by law to work in any medical facility hence his concern.

“If our bosses resign, we cannot resign because we are under training. But if our bosses resign, that makes our work redundant because by law we would not be qualified to work in any facility.”

Dr. Attafah explained that though they are conversant with the medical profession, they fear they could be sued by patients if they try to dispense healthcare without the supervision of the senior medical officers. “This is not to say that we cannot do it but then if we attempt to do those things without the presence of our bosses, we are subjecting ourselves to a myriad of law suits and that is the last thing we would want to happen.

Already the salaries that have come is for debt payment. If the patient sues us for doing something without the bosses appendage, who will pay for the lawsuit?” The next phase of the doctors’ strike would mean they will suspend emergency services if government fails to meet their demands of agreeing on a conditions of service document for them.