Health workers cautioned against poor attitude to patients

Various stakeholders have bemoaned the poor attitude of some health personnel towards patients seeking health care.

According to them, the undesirable attitude of health staff towards patients resulted in worsening the conditions of the patients and charged them to ensure maximum care, love, and support towards the patients.

The speakers were addressing a cross-section of nurses and other health personnel of the St. Martin de Porres Hospital at Agomanya in the Eastern Region during a lecture as part of celebrations marking the facility’s 75th-anniversary celebrations.

Wondering why professionals should treat patients with disdain, Sr. Domitilla Amissah-Mensah HDR underscoring with instances from the bible said the catholic healthcare system is designed to give priority to the sick.

“Let me tell you this, the image of Jesus Christ curing the sick is one of the most powerful and recurrent images in the Gospel,” said Sr. Domitilla Amissah-Mensah, adding, “Ultimately, a catholic healthcare institution will offer hope to people even if it cannot offer the concrete healing they desire.”

According to her, the catholic philosophy on healthcare delivery which is centered on the importance to care for the sick is based on hospitality, kindness, justice, charity, inclusion, integrity, and respect.

She detailed the five essential principles of healthcare as; putting the dignity of the human person at the center, adopting a holistic vision of health, giving priority to the sick, remembering the figure of Christ, and faith.

According to Sr. Domitilla Amissah-Mensah, these principles guide the social responsibility of catholic healthcare aimed at promoting and defending human dignity. She said, “The sick coming to access health are not just humans but they are people with feelings…they come because they are in need so you the nurse or doctor must handle them with tender loving care, have patience for them with love to cure them to address their physical and spiritual needs,” she said.

Decrying the habit of impatience and verbal abuse meted out to patients who visit health institutions to access healthcare, she emphasized that scolding them worsens their plight instead. She said, “We need to be patient with them, let’s not scold them, scolding them increases their pain.”

She added that though healthcare personnel at the St. Martin De Porres Hospital were professional in the discharge of their duties, it behooves authorities to encourage them to continue to maintain the habit.

The Reverend Sister cautioned health personnel not to transfer domestic issues to the workplace and to their patients. “As a nurse coming to the hospital, you should realize that you don’t bring your problems from the house to the workplace,” she admonished them, adding that such a situation could be problematic to the patient and hospital.

Koforidua Diocesan Chaplain of the Christian Mothers and Coordinator of Justice and Peace Commission, Rev. Monsignor Paul Lawer congratulated past and current management, staff, and personnel who worked and are working at the St. Martin’s De Porres Hospital over the last 75 years.

He however appealed to all and sundry to emulate the virtues of the founder, the late Bishop Joseph Oliver Bowers SVD by ensuring that the facility remains a conducive environment for patients to receive medical care with human dignity and love and also called on patients to cooperate with the staff for a holistic quality medical care.

Chairman for the occasion and Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Lower Manya Krobo, Hon Simon Kweku Tetteh also charged the staff to guard the image of the institution they work for and desist from negative publicity which goes a long way to affect its output.

He encouraged the personnel to continue with the good work they are doing for the hospital to improve on its status for the benefit of future generations.
The MCE was also grateful to the authorities of the facility for ensuring that it continues to serve as a source of employment for several young health personnel.