Junior doctors in Sierra Leone are on Friday into a third day of an indefinite strike following an assault on one of their members at the main referral Connaught hospital in Freetown, APA can report.
According to local media, Dr Catherine Jackson-Cole was assaulted at a peaceful protest organised by health workers, where cleaners have refused to clean hospital wards leading to uncollected rubbish strewn across the compound.
The cleaners have not been paid for almost a year by a contractor who says he’s not received his money from the health ministry for 15 months.
The minister of Health, Dr Demby, is calling on staff at the hospital and all doctors to return to work while investigations into the assault on Dr Jackson-Cole as well as the issue of unpaid cleaners are investigated.
However, the junior doctors say they won’t return to work unless the culprits who allegedly include the country’s deputy health minister, chief medical officer and the permanent secretary resign and the sanitary condition at the hospital is improved.
ABJ/APA