Parliament's Health Committee will today engage the leadership of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA).

The meeting is part of efforts by the government to resolve the ongoing strike action embarked on by the group to ensure their conditions of service are met.

Members of GRNMA on June 2 withdrew from their posts over delays in their 2024 Collective Agreement. In response, the National Labour Commission (NLC) filed an ex parte application on Thursday, June 5.

A 10-day injunction has been placed on the nationwide strike after the Industrial and Labour Division of the High Court in Accra described the protest as illegal.

Meanwhile, the GRNMA has disclosed that it is yet to formally receive a court order restraining its ongoing strike. Public Relations Officer of the GRNMA, Joseph Krampah, has insisted that the group will continue its strike until an official injunction notice is served.

Health Minister Mintah Akandoh has revealed that the government will not be able to meet the conditions of service for the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), currently on strike, this year.

Engaging the press, the sector minister announced that the conditions of service being requested to be implemented were not captured in the 2025 budget statement; hence, it will "completely throw the economy off gear if implemented in the manner it currently exists."

"We are mindful of the serious economic consequences of unbudgeted expenditure and want to avoid the economic slippages that have led to the hardship in the recent past," the Health Minister revealed.

The Minority in Parliament has entreated the government to put in the necessary measures to ensure the strike action is called off.

Dr Afriyie Ayew told the government to work towards providing the conditions of service worked on by the previous government.

“It is our belief that governance is a continuous process regardless of which party is in government public servants are paid, collective bargaining rights which are agreed on remain their rights regardless of which government takes over after elections.”

The nationwide strike by the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) is taking a heavy toll on the delivery of healthcare services, with many lives being lost due to patients being stranded.

The Mortuary Workers Association of Ghana (MOWAG) has bemoaned the evident rise in mortality cases amid the ongoing strike by nurses and midwives in the country.

General Secretary of MOWAG, Richard Kofi Jordan, noted that the death rate has increased by approximately 100% to 150% due to nurses not being at post.

“Looking at the [number] of deaths compared to the past and now, the death toll has increased significantly, and it is not surprising because of the impact of the nurse’s absence. On average, where we are to record about 10 a day, we are recording about 20 to 25. This tells you that the absence of our nurses is becoming so severe,” he said.

Making reference to Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, he mentioned that “we know averagely in Korle Bu, you can have about 50 this time. It has risen above that. Other facilities (like) KATH and all that, we are hearing it.”

According to him, the nurses who are no longer at their posts were mitigating the daily death rate across medical facilities in Accra.