Political situation in Ghana

Healthcare workers flee Ghana: “It’s a ticking time bomb”

Thousands of healthcare workers have left Ghana for jobs in the US, Canada, the UK and Australia, among others. Since the pandemic alone, the West African country has lost an estimated 6,000 nurses, writes The Guardian.

Low wages, non-payment and a lack of resources are seen as the biggest factors. At the same time, the government has signed agreements to send hundreds of nurses to countries in the Caribbean. They believe that unemployment in the profession is too high, but the World Health Organization (WHO) believes that there are significant challenges when it comes to staffing healthcare.

Nurses who have stayed in the country testify that the number of nurses per capita is too low, and that this leads to burnout.

“It’s a ticking time bomb,” says Bright Ansah, who works in the capital Accra.

Nurse: You only get respect when you move

Nana Yaa Mills is one of thousands of nurses who have left Ghana for jobs in other countries. The 39-year-old has moved to the United States and tells The Guardian that she is happy with the decision to leave after twelve years in the African country's healthcare sector.

She believes that managers and authorities in her home country do not take the profession seriously.

- They only respect you when you leave.

Since the pandemic, 6,000 nurses have left for better-paying jobs in Western countries.