I understand the disappointment and appreciate the inconvenience of my action— Ashanti NSS boss apologizes

Underfire Ashanti Regional Director of the National Service Secretariat (NSS), Mr. Alex Poku has eaten a humble pie.

He has apologized for his recent verbal assault on a nurse at the Manhyia District Hospital in the Ashanti region captured in a viral audio recording.

Mr. Poku Mensah allegedly assaulted a nurse at the Manhyia District Hospital on Sunday, November 27, calling her all sorts of image-diminishing names as captured on tape.

Reports indicate that Mr. Poku Mensah got a report from his daughter, who is doing her housemanship, telling him about a supposed disrespect toward her.

A report his father sided with without first conducting an investigation, probably due to his position barged into the hospital and assaulted the nurse in question.

Reacting to this, The Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) earlier called for his dismissal.

The GRNMA, in a letter signed by Madam Perpetual Ofori Ampofo, President and David Tenkorang-Twum, General Secretary in a statement on Tuesday, November 29, said the NSS Regional Director is unfit for his job.

They gave a 72-hour ultimatum to the government to removal hm from office indicating that refusal to heed their demand will result in a sit-down strike.

However the underfire Mr. Poku Mensah in a Facebook post said he is sorry and truly understands the damage he has caused the said nurse.

He explained that what he did has never been how he handles issues, but it was due to a genuine quest to mediate an issue he describes as “persistent” between his daughter, the House officer and her colleague nurse, whom he said he sees as his own daughter.

“I understand the disappointment and appreciate the inconvenience my action has caused the general public as well as the Nursing FRATERNITY and Manhyia Hospital,” his post began.

“This has never been my style* but for a genuine reason to mediate a persistent issue between my daughter(Doctor) and a colleague nurse who I as well consider my daughter.

“I do apologize for any mishap and assure all, there shall not be a repetition of such,” the NSS boss stated.

He is looking “forward to maintaining a cordial relationship between any affected person.”

Read a copy of the release from the GRNMA as copied to Modernghana News below;

The attention of the leadership of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) has been drawn to an audio recording emanating from Manhyia District Hospital in the Ashanti region in which a male voice is heard raining insults on a nurse and for that matter all nurses and midwives in Ghara.

From the said audio, the male voice has been identified as Mr. Alex Poku Mensah, popularly called Omens, who is the Regional Director for the National Service Scheme in the Asharti region who also happens to be the father of the House Officer who had a misunderstanding with the nurse. Having considered the content of the audio and the report received from our Ashanti Regional branch, the leadership of GRNMA wish to state as follows:

1. The Public Services Commission and Government for that matter should sack the said Regional Director immediately because he is not fit for the Director position he holds in the Public Service. He had absolutely NO RIGHT to enter Manhyia District Hospital and verbally abuse and threaten the nurse in question who was on duty at the time.

As a Director, he should have known that Manhyia District Hospital had a Medical Superintendent and a Nurse Manager under whom the nurse works and if indeed ho had any complaint to make, they were the people he should have engaged and not to go to the hospital and fight the nurse on behalf of his daughter.

We wish to state categorically that the government does not relieve Mr. Alex Poku Mensah of his duty as Ashanti Regional Director of the National Service Scheme within 72 hours, nurses and midwives of Manhyia Hospital will be called upon to lay down their tools, followed by the whole of Ashanti Region and then it will be escalated to the whole nation.

2. The Management of Manhyia Hospital should ensure that the House Officer is schooled on her role in the Medical Team and the fact that Nurses and Midwives are patient's advocates and will continue to advocate for their patients and clients even if it makes another member in the team uncomfortable.

In this particular instance, the nurse had used her own phone and her own call credit to call the said House Officer to come to the hospital and log into the E-Health system and update the patient's prescription order so that the patient is not billed for unissued drugs.

In order for peace and harmony to prevail at the facility, we additionally call on the management of the hospital to take all the professional staff through Team Building and Team Work to foster unity of purpose at the facility.

2. All nurses and midwives at the Manhyia District Hospital should remain calm and go about their normal duties and wait for further directives from the leadership of the Association which will happen if need be.

Nurses and Midwives around the country are also called upon to continue providing quality nursing and midwifery services to the good people of Ghana and not to be distracted by the actions of Mr. Alex Poku Mensah and his daughter.

3. The GRNMA Ashanti Regional Branch leaders are directed to report the matter of Mr. Alex Poku Mansah's verbal abuse and throats on cur comrade to the Police immediately and report on same t the GRNMA Headquarers.

5. We cal on all persons holding high positions in the Public or Civil Service to appreciate the fact that. the positions of authority or service they hold, simply involve responsibility to the public and never must be used to threaten, undermine or intimidate the same people it is supposed to serve.