MOHW is working to keep its Belize’s medical professionals in country

And as you heard, the ministry is not recommending a return of a face-mask mandate, it is encouraging Belizean health professionals to join its team. The ministry says there is an urgent need for more medical professionals such as doctors and nurses. Belizean nurses are constantly recruited to work outside of the country due to higher wages and better working conditions. In August of this year, nurses across the country staged a walkout where they demanded improved working conditions, more resources and better wages. Health and Wellness Minister, Kevin Bernard, was asked to comment on how the ministry is doing its part to encourage Belizean health professionals to remain in the country.

Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health and Wellness: “As you know it’s not just here in Belize and I just mentioned that to cement the point that while in Belize we have that issue as well but it’s regional, it’s worldwide but we have to find ways how to attract more people into the public health system. We have to look at, in recent meetings we’ve had with the nursing association is to look at how we can bond our people that are sent out to study for longer periods and as well looking at the allowances, so everybody as you know we have to be able to have a good incentive in order for them to retained because people are coming and taking our people for better improvements of course but at the end of the day we have a great set of healthcare workers here, we provide great service and so we as the government now we must just do our part to make sure we can keep and retain these people and from having to lose them to the United Kingdom or the United States or so forth. But of course we are also looking at other areas, our region Nicaragua being a close area that we’re trying to get through bilateral means  access to some other nurses so that could fill some of the gaps that exists in Belize. But the commitment is that we are going to ensure we continuously look at ways how to improve so that we could retain our nurses and our doctors and I encourage those who are out there looking for a job and there’s a need for that post in our facilities here across the country apply and we will hire you.”