Doctors join nurses' strike for better conditions

Government doctors in Sierra Leone's capital Freetown, joined on Friday a three-week strike by nurses for more pay and better conditions of service, official sources told IRIN. None of the three main state-run medical facilities in Freetown - the Connaught, the Princes Christian Maternity, and Children's hospitals - were functioning normally, the official said. Many patients had gone home or switched to private or military and police hospitals while military nurses and Red Cross volunteers provided some care to the few remaining patients. Hospitals outside the capital were unaffected by the strike, the source said. In a recent statement on the strike, the government reported that it remained committed to undertaking a comprehensive review of the salary and grade structure "for the entire service". "The doctors and nurses are civil servants, so it would be very difficult for government to give one segment of the service raises and not the rest," the official said, adding that the strike had continued even though the doctors and nurses had received an interim package. "They have already collected their increments," the official added. The government said a number of projects to develop the health sector were in the pipeline. They include remodeling the three hospitals in Freetown and five health centres in the country's Western Area and rehabilitating the Kissy Mental Hospital - estimated cost US $206 million - with funds provided by the Islamic Development Bank. Other donors include the European Union, which is investing in health centres, district hospitals, the Paramedical School, and the School of Hygiene. The World Bank is investing in rebuilding and developing health facilities in all districts.