President Museveni has stated that his government lacks sufficient funds to pay medical interns.
To address this issue, he suggested that the financial responsibility for supporting medical students during their internships should fall on the same individuals or entities that sponsored their education.
“Who should pay for the internship? Some believe the government should, but I find that risky. The government would pay if it had the resources, but it doesn’t, given its many responsibilities like roads and security. It’s not ideal to tie the future of our young doctors to government funding, which might be delayed or unavailable,” Museveni explained.
During a lecture to 210 post-medical interns who had just completed a 10-day patriotism and ideological training at the National Leadership Institute (NALI) in Kyankwanzi, the President made these comments at State House Entebbe.
His remarks come when over 1,000 medical interns are stuck due to delays in the government’s release of funds for their internships.
“Why don’t we agree that a person who has qualified as a medical doctor after five years in medical school should continue with their internship under the same sponsorship? If someone sponsored you for five years, why stop now? There’s also the issue of supervisors for these interns. Are there enough?” Museveni asked.
“I propose that the entity sponsoring the undergraduate education should continue to support the internship. This could be the government, a loan scheme, State House, or the students’ parents. This would eliminate the issue of waiting for government funds. The government should also ensure enough consultants are available to supervise the interns. This approach would simplify the process,” he added.
In the current budget, Shs 35 billion was allocated for new cohorts of medical interns. However, nearly two months into the financial year, the government has yet to release the necessary funds for the Ministry of Health to deploy the interns across various hospitals and health centers.
Museveni also urged medical professionals to support his efforts to increase the health budget so that the government can create more positions at Health Center III and IV levels, which would allow more doctors to be employed.
He further promised to financially support qualified doctors in starting their private health facilities, given that not all can be absorbed into government roles.
“Joining the UPDF and police as medical professionals is music to my ears. You’re young and energetic, and you’re always welcome in the army and police. I can recruit you even now,” Museveni said.
He also commended Ms. Hellen Seku for her active role as the Head of the Patriotism Secretariat.
“I want to thank Seku for her dynamism since taking over this office. She has brought great energy to the role. I also appreciate Kyankwanzi for developing their infrastructure. We support them because they remind us of their needs,” he noted.
The Minister for the Presidency, Babirye Milly Babalanda, praised the Patriotism Secretariat for successfully conducting the training program for post-medical interns.
“This is a unique and strategic addition to our program,” Babalanda said. She also thanked the President for consistently attending the pass-out ceremonies of the patriots.
“Your lectures to the patriots have been inspiring and memorable. Your presence, despite your busy schedule, demonstrates how much you value and prioritize this program,” Babalanda added.
On behalf of the post-medical interns, David Mugyema expressed their gratitude to President Museveni for his unwavering support to medical practitioners and his role in transforming Uganda through education.
“We are deeply grateful for your transformative leadership, which has enabled Uganda to achieve tremendous development. Your dedication to improving Uganda’s health sector is greatly appreciated.
We also acknowledge the significant strides made in increasing the salaries of medical workers,” Mugyema said.
