Over 12 000 health sector posts vacant

posts in its establishment including non health professionals instead of 47 000 as per World Health Organisation standards.
The complement was last reviewed in 1983. The board said shortages sometimes lead to medical practitioners making serious mistakes in executing their duties because of burn-outs.
HSB executive chairperson Dr Lovemore Mbengeranwa told the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Welfare on Tuesday that there was need for the sector to be exempted from the job freeze.
Murehwa North MP Cde David Parirenyatwa (Zanu-PF) chairs the committee.
“There is need for manpower review because the last review of 35 700 was done in 1983 when the country’s population was just 7,5 million but we now have 12,8 million (people) but that is not taken into consideration,” he said.
“This means that we are lagging behind because besides the population increase, we have also experienced an increase in disease burden, for instance HIV and Aids.”
He said the minimum WHO benchmark was 2 500 citizens per health worker.
Dr Mbengeranwa said 31 000 health professionals were required compared to the 23 000 who are currently employed. He said the health sector needed to be expanded by 7 000 to meet the minimum WHO requirement.
“The ideal number required would be 47 000 for the whole health sector. In 2010, we sent bids of 5 516 to Treasury but we were not successful and we resubmitted again in 2011 but we were not successful.”
Dr Mbengeranwa said out of 347 specialists required there were only 81 with a vacancy rate of 77 percent. He said 1 220 doctors were required but only 814 were currently in employment. Instead of 11 151 general nurses, Dr Mbengeranwa said, only 9 930 were employed. He said 180 environmental officers were required though only 100 had been employed. Instead of 1 471 environmental technicians needed there were only 720.
Dr Mbengeranwa said there were only 64 pharmacists instead of 145 with 273 instead of 300 senior pharmacists in the establishment.
He said there were only 141 nurse tutors instead of the required 257 thereby seriously impacting negatively on the training of nurses.
Dr Mbengeranwa said the job freeze had also impacted heavily on nurses who were being trained. He said in 2010 only 374 nurses had been employed from 1 516 trained while 607 were absorbed last year from 1 044 who trained. Dr Mbengeranwa said there were 1 579 nurses who are out of employment.
“We feel the health sector should be exempted from the freeze because it’s key to economic advancement because people will start wondering where our priorities are. People are dying of HIV and Aids, cholera and typhoid among other diseases,” he said.
The committee said the shortfall was not acceptable.
Kwekwe Central MP, Mr Blessing Chebundo (MDC-T) said: “The shortfall shows that there is a conspiracy in Government where people don’t respect the sanctity of life and development. This is not acceptable at all.”