Cham nurses shun strike

Nurses and midwives working for Christian Health Association of Malawi (Cham) facilities yesterday shunned a directive by the National Organisation of Nurses and Midwives in Malawi (Nonm) to go on an indefinite strike.

Nonm instructed its members in Cham facilities to go on a strike starting yesterday following the expiry of its seven-day ultimatum given to government demanding salary increment and arrears from October last year and non-taxed leave.

But spot-checks at some Cham facilities and reports reaching The Nation indicate that the nurses and midwives were working normally with no stay-away in sight.

Out of the 171 Cham health facilities across the country, only nurses and midwives from Nkhoma Mission Hospital in Lilongwe and Mua Mission Hospital in Dedza had reportedly downed tools.

Some nurses The Nation interviewed said they had been advised by their workplaces’ superiors not to go on strike because their grievances were being appropriately addressed.

Efforts to get Nonm’s comment proved ineffective as their phones went unanswered after several attempts but spokesperson for the National Taskforce for Cham Workers, Chisomo Mkandawire, confirmed advising the workers to ignore the strike.

But Nonm president Dorothy Ngoma told the media in Blantyre on Wednesday there was no confusion because her organisation was only fighting for its members while the taskforce represents every Cham worker.

Cham facilities provide about 40 percent of healthcare delivery services in Malawi and mostly serve poor people in hard-to-reach areas where government facilities are not available.