$8000 On Each Of Us? Explain - GMSA to Gov't

The Federation of the Ghana Medical Students Association, has called on the government to explain how it spends the $8,000 it quoted to spend on each medical student in the country. They said the medical students pay for everything used in their education, including laboratory coats, boots and stethoscopes and so on. They therefore wondered where the $8000 got to.

Speaking at a news conference in Accra today, the President of the Association, Kwasi Safo said the plight of the medical student is appauling. He said by the nature of their training, they are exposed to deadly infections, yet without any form of protection.

Mr. Safo called on government to be weary of sacrificing quality for numbers in the training of doctors. On the issue of the National Health Insurance Scheme, the Association said, it is in support of it since it would reduce corruption at the hospitals because patients' bills are not paid directly. It said the quality of health care would not be dependent on the amount of money one can part with at the hospitals. The association has therefore called on the populace to patronize the scheme.