Rural health staffing worries Luvindao …… Unam urged to train rural health workers

Namibia’s efforts to bring healthcare closer to rural communities continue to face a challenge, with some health professionals showing little interest in taking up positions outside towns and cities.

Health and Social Services Minister Dr Esperance Luvindao has raised concern over the trend.

The minister said government may create positions and expand health services in rural areas, but those services cannot function effectively if health professionals are unwilling to work there.

Luvindao made the remarks during the signing of a memorandum of agreement between the Ministry of Health and Social Services and the University of Namibia (Unam) on cooperation in health and applied sciences.

She cautioned Unam to ensure that the training of future health professionals prepares them not only to work in urban hospitals, but also to serve communities in rural and remote areas.

Luvindao said discussions with the leadership of the health sector have identified several positions that remain difficult to fill, with many of them located in rural areas.