Some Registered Midwives want to form their own organisation.
As a result, some of them have formed the National Association of Registered Midwives.
There are no registered nurses among the association’s members.
Auntie Leticia Attia, a founding member of the group, says they decided to form their own group so they could bargain for better working conditions for members.
According to her, all of the bargains struck by the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association over the years benefited only the nurses.
She stated on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM’s Frontline that the formation of the new association will allow them to represent and fight for registered midwives.
She said that “Midwifery is a distinct profession in and of itself. It is a specialisation”.
“We decided to go it alone because the work is not the same…this is why we formed the association to address midwifery issues. We will not see certain things to work on if we are confused.”
“When they go to the negotiation table, it does not favour us. The negotiations only favour the nurses,” she stressed.
She added that midwives “are their own doctors” because they are able to diagnose and treat some cases but refer the ines that are extremely severe to the medical doctors.
She indicated that per international standards, nurses and midwives cannot be joined together in forming an association.
