The Government Nursing Officers’ Association said their members decided to withdraw from obtaining samples for PCR testing and Rapid Antigen Testing (RAT) from yesterday over several problems pertaining to their service.
Association President Saman Rathnapriya writing to Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi outlined seven issues faced by the nursing staff, adding that solutions were not received to those problems despite repeated discussions with the Health authorities.
The underlined issues include not providing an adequate number of N95 face masks and other facilities related to COVID-19 prevention programmes, not issuing the Circular related to granting special holidays, not providing enough transport facilities for the nursing staff who are reporting to work, not paying allowances for holidays declared by the Government, not issuing the Circular pertaining to providing special facilities for pregnant nurses, not covering about 4,000 nurses and their family members during the inoculation programme and the lack of treatment facilities for nurses and their family members when they are infected with COVID-19.
The letter has also been copied to the Health Ministry Secretary and the Health Services Director General.
