PORT HEALTH WORKERS URGED TO BE VIGILANT (PAGE 29)

Port health workers have been reminded that society will not forgive them if they fail to discharge their duties diligently and ensure that diseases are not imported into the country.
The Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Sylvester Anamana, who made the call, said the work of the port health worker was very important to the country as they mitigated the effects of communicable diseases that might be contracted through the country’s entry points.
Speaking at the strategic planning workshop for officials of port health in the region, he said it seemed port health staff had been forgotten after they had been placed under the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment.
The health director said it was important for the staff to be equipped and frequently helped to improve upon themselves but those efforts were constantly thwarted since they were placed under the control of the local government sector. He said after a port health worker had been trained for a specific task they were transferred without consulting the health directorate.
He said without the port health staff diseases would have been “imported” into the country and, therefore, stressed the need for all to ensure that they were well resourced and given the needed attention and training to bring them abreast with modern day practices.
He said it was about time serious consideration was given to port health workers to ensure safety at the country’s entry points, especially in the Western Region.
Dr Anamana said large volumes of food, drugs, and other consumables were imported into the country through the ports. Therefore, the whole country expected the port health worker to be vigilant to ensure that people did not import any unwholesome products into the country to satisfy their selfish interests as against the national interest.
He also urged the port workers to ensure that vessels that docked at the country’s ports conformed to the laid-down regulations.
“I want to urge you to be vigilant; if any disease slips through your fingers and enters this country, the citizens will not forgive us. The public hopes and trusts that we can do it, therefore, let us live up to expectation,” he said.
He added that to achieve an efficient and effective port health system there was the need to work as a team with other stakeholders to ensure that the right things were done.