While there was a lotta grumbling about the 8% retroactive wage increase for all Government workers – which gave them a nice lump sum for Christmas shopping – the follow-up increases going forward for each category of workers possibly took the sting off the termite of inflation which eats away at our wages and salaries!! But one category of critical workers, vital to the literal wellbeing of the nation, was left out – with promises of “later” for them… Anticipation gnawed at their stomachs!! After all, most folks think that health workers make a ton of money – not unreasonably considering all the training they have to do before earning their stripes!! But what’s the reality?? Did you know that all that swotting for seven years to get into med school by the “best and brightest” is just a start?? That’s followed by one year as an intern – where they begin to realise what kind of life they’ve signed up for – meaning NO LIFE outside the hospital, after all the weekly 70+ hours they have to put in!!
Then they proceed for another year as a General Medical Officer (GMO) employed by either the GPHC or the MoH…where the former had a higher salary scale but the latter had better benefits, such as holidays etc. Then they have to undergo a FOUR-YEAR residency programme, which means heavy studies, exams etc – while being “on call” for over 30 hours once or twice a week. And that just makes them qualified to APPLY to become a Registrar!! After God knows how many years – or a tad quicker, if you have a godfather and have published research – you become a “Consultant”!!
Well, President Ali just announced the raise for them. And while it sounds like a lot in percentage terms, laypersons would have finally realized how little doctor and nurses make!! All of them were just brought up to the salary scale of the GPHC staff – which was nothing to write home about!! Can you imagine your lives are literally in the hands of folks who don’t earn much more than, say, a garbage worker in the US?? Your Eyewitness just hopes they take their Hippocratic Oath seriously!! Unfortunately, some of the big consultants think it’s a “Hypocritic Oath” – the way they combine their private and public practice!!
Be that as it may, it’s a good start, and your Eyewitness expects that as more private hospitals open up, the competition would force the Government to at least match the salaries of medical workers in Barbados or Trinidad! After all, the developed world has already been openly poaching those who’re willing to move!!
But your Eyewitness is somewhat confused. Did the doctors employed by the GPHC receive a second round of prospective raises?? They’re supposed to be the front liners, no??
…and decreases
While Guyana’s now the fastest growing economy in the world, let’s remind ourselves that it’s just a nominal metric brought about by oil!! And most of THAT money, we know, doesn’t stay in Guyana!! We were warned by all and sundry that depending on one resource is the way to economic hell. So, our leaders swore, “Diversify, diversify, diversify”!!
And as far as our historically largest agricultural industry – sugar – after the PNC’s unilateral shuttering of half of the plantations, the diversification was to package sugar, produce ethanol, use the bagasse to generate electricity, and also produce plantation white sugar. Sounded good. But before you can do any of that, you gotta produce sugar cane – and for a host of reasons, we haven’t been able to do that.
It was just announced that, for the year, we’ll produce a miserly 46,800 tonnes. When the “white man” used to produce 360,000 tons!! Shouldn’t we produce at least half? Oh, how the mighty have fallen!!
…in clean-up?
Your Eyewitness is waiting with bated breath on the outcome of the Mayor’s challenge to the Government in regard to moving all those vendors from outside the “Big Hospital”. The scads of doctors and nurses sampling the fare wasn’t approval enough?
