When Interns Run Hospitals

Revelations in parliament by health minister Esperance Luvindao regarding allegations that medical doctors are leaving interns to run health facilities are alarming.

While the Ministry of Health and Social Services, alongside the Health Professions Council of Namibia, investigates reports at places like the Mariental and Oshakati hospitals, the medical fraternity must confront a sobering reality.

If true, these allegations represent a profound dereliction of duty.

A lackadaisical approach to the supervision of junior doctors is not a minor bureaucratic oversight; it is a systemic failure with far-reaching and detrimental consequences for our healthcare ecosystem.

It compromises the learning stage of medical interns.

Internship is a critical, structured transition from theory to practical competence.