3,000 nurses leave Ghana every year, midwife shortage is now a national emergency, association warns.
Ghana’s Registered Nurses and Midwives Association has called attention to the country’s dire shortage of midwives, with some 3,000 nurses and midwives leaving each year for better prospects overseas as the world faces a shortfall of almost one million midwives needed to ensure safe childbirth. At a symposium held in Kumasi to commemorate the International Day of the Midwife, the Association underscored the need for a holistic national strategy to deal with the crisis beyond increasing the number of trainees. “There are still gaps in the workforce, especially in rural communities,” Philimon Adu Brempong, First Vice Chairman, Ashanti Regional Chapter, said, calling for equitable distribution of midwives, better working conditions, career advancement and initiatives to address burnout. Veronica Millicent Dzomeku of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, emphasized the role of midwives in reducing maternal and neonatal deaths, noting that the World Health Organization data shows that a woman dies every two minutes globally from pregnancy or childbirth and most of these deaths are preventable with adequate care. She called for more investment in midwifery education, infrastructure, mentorship and professional development. Gertrude Adomako Mensah urged pregnant women to prioritise antenatal care and encouraged midwives to strengthen counselling across health facilities.
