With government on a drive to increase resource provision in the health sector, the need to uphold ethics has come under the spotlight at a quality healthcare workshop underway in Masvingo.
Over the years concern has been raised over the treatment of patients by health care workers at some medical facilities, with the common view being that primary service providers are not empathetic.
Discussions at a two-day Health Care Workers Inaugural National Quality symposium in Masvingo centered on the need for a paradigm shift as a way of ensuring quality health care service.
Health and Child Care Deputy Minister, Dr John Mangwiro underscored the need for health personnel to improve their attitude when serving patients.
He said: “What people get at Karanda is empathy, politeness. People mention that they get roughened up at the local hospitals so they would rather travel long distances or pay a lot of money to go to private hospitals.
“There is no wonder drug at Karanda. The wonder drug is empathy and politeness. We need to improve our attitude, good attitude and politeness will help us improve our quality health care.”
Focusing on the strides government is taking to improve the health delivery system, Dr Mangwiro said government is working to capacitate local pharmaceutical companies to ensure drugs are manufactured locally.
“We have about 13 companies who had become redundant because they were saying there is no market in Zimbabwe. We can save a lot of foreign currency by manufacturing drugs locally,” he added. A strong health care system will ensure the country’s citizens get quality health care services locally while also creating more jobs in the pharmaceutical industry
