Thomas Okoth

This is the system we are fixing and u are yapping alot When you were in soroti who handled all your issues ,isnt it an intern Doctor. Its too bad tobe a victim ,but we can do better Rip twins x.com/i/status/20559…

Museveni's government pays 21.6 billion to mps every month but no money for medical interns Museveni's government pays 166.8 billion to mps every 5 years to buy cars but no money for medical interns. Museveni hates Ugandans ngl.

We reject the internship policy in its totality!

I don't even have energy to comment about that new health policy. The people that made it can afford treatment abroad so this doesn't affect them directly. Omuntu wawansi on the other hand, wesibe bili ✌

Medical interns are doctors under apprenticeship, not free labour. Unpaid internship is not reform. It is exploitation. Pay interns. Protect training. Protect patients. //END//

Bobi Wine once said: "Atamanyi bw'aba ngamanyi nti tamanyi, oyo abera muyizi mumuyigirize." So, I will assume that you do not know, and that you know you do not know. So let me teach you. Who is a Medical Intern? Medical interns are fully qualified health professionals who have completed university and been awarded degrees. They include: Medical Doctors Nurses Midwives Pharmacists Dental Surgeons After graduation, they have two possible paths: 1. Non-Clinical Path A graduate may choose not to practice medicine directly. They can: Join research Pursue a Master's degree in a non-clinical field Work in public health Join administration, policy, academia, or other non-clinical careers and be working. 2. Clinical Path A graduate who wishes to treat patients in hospitals must first complete one year of supervised internship. Uganda follows a British-style training model where a graduate works under supervision for one year before being granted full independent practice. The purpose of internship was originally simple: Learn under supervision Gain practical experience Transition safely into independent practice The Problem: Over the years, Uganda has faced a severe shortage of healthcare workers. Many hospitals operate with: Too few doctors Too few nurses and midwives Too few pharmacists Limited budgets for hiring staff Hiring a fully employed health worker is expensive. Government must pay salaries, benefits, study leave, pensions, housing allowances, and other costs. As the shortage grew, government needed a cheaper solution. The Solution Government Chose: Instead of hiring enough healthcare workers, Uganda increasingly relied on medical interns to fill staffing gaps. The were turned into a source of extremely cheap labour and went from being supervised to gain experience but doing real employable work. For many years, interns received only about UGX 750,000 per month, with no food, housing, or other benefits. This arrangement saved government billions of shillings that would otherwise have been spent hiring fully employed health workers. What Internship Became: On paper, internship was supposed to be supervised training. In reality, it gradually became service delivery. Medical interns routinely: 1. Work Extremely Long Hours Many intern doctors perform 36-hour shifts at least twice a week. 2. Provide Cheap Labour Hospitals depend heavily on interns to keep services running, some hospitals can go days without seniors but interns doing the job (They're not being supervised but are providing a service, which the government is supposed to hire someone to do it) 3. Work With Minimal Supervision Any medical intern will tell you that supervision is often limited. In many rotations, supervision happens mainly during the first few weeks. After that, interns largely report to seniors while independently handling patients and making decisions. Personally, during internship, I performed over 100 Caesarean Sections without a senior doctor physically present. That is not what most people imagine when they hear the phrase "supervised training." The Impact: This system achieved several things: - Hospitals continued functioning despite staff shortages. - Patient complaints reduced because healthcare workers were available. - Government avoided hiring large numbers of senior staff and thus budget saved. - Health budgets remained lower than they otherwise would have been. The result: Government saves an estimated: UGX 12–15 billion per month UGX 145–180 billion per year compared to the cost of hiring enough fully employed health workers to replace the work currently performed by interns (This isn't gap of being supervised to learn, it is a real healthcare staffing gap being filled by medical interns). Meanwhile, government spends approximately: UGX 4.55 billion per month UGX 54.6 billion per year on intern allowances. How the Fight Started: Over time, interns increasingly felt that they were no longer being treated as trainees. They were functioning as employees while being paid trainee allowances. Interns raised these concerns to President Museveni. In 2021, the President agreed that intern allowances should be increased to approximately UGX 2.5 million per month. The increase was implemented because government recognized that interns were providing critical services to the healthcare system and dumpenning the deficit. What Happened Next: One year later, discussions emerged about reducing the cost of internship even further. The argument was simple: Government wanted the services interns provided but did not want the financial burden that came with paying them. As a result, ministry of health, which is supposed to fight the well-being of its people decided to raise a proposal to revise medical training and extend the duration of medical school from five years to six years, just because they want to take exploitation to another level and have it completely free. The practical effect would be that the same work currently done by paid interns would instead be done by students during an additional year of training, labelling medical interns as students failed and thus, they decided to add a full year to medical practive just to have free labor. Why Many Consider This Unfair This change affects more than future interns. It affects every medical student, including those who may never want to practice clinically. Someone who wants to: - Work in research - Join public health - Enter administration - Pursue non-clinical careers would still be forced to spend an extra year in medical school because government wants clinical services without paying internship allowances. Many see this not as an educational reform, but as a financial decision designed to reduce government expenditure while overworking its citizens. The Real Issue: This debate is often framed as: "Why should interns be paid to learn?" That is the wrong question. The real question is: "Should interns be paid for the substantial work they perform beyond the original purpose of supervised training?" If internship truly consisted of observation, teaching, mentorship, and closely supervised practice, the discussion would be very different. But that is not the reality experienced by many interns. A Simple Analogy Imagine joining a company as a cleaner. Because you are a cleaner, your employer begins assigning you additional responsibilities. You become: The gatekeeper The gardener The cook The electrician The driver Eventually, several other employees are removed because you are performing their duties. On paper, you remain a cleaner. In reality, you are doing the work of an entire department. That is how many medical interns feel. Officially, they are trainees. In practice, they always function as a critical workforce keeping hospitals running. And unlike the cleaner in this example, the intern cannot simply refuse, because completing internship is mandatory for obtaining a license to practice. "Stop using Medical Interns"

@NelsonMogaka_ Feel sadder for Ugandans! #revisethewholehealthpolicy

Medical internship is that phase where you're expected to function like a doctor, learn like a student, survive on little sleep and somehow still have a smile for every patient. I truly feel sad for Uganda's interns.

Sometimes it feels as though we must have offended God somehow. How else can one explain a government that behaves like a man with many wives, lavishing affection and resources on a few while neglecting the rest? Medical interns are not students; they are doctors in training, and in Uganda, they actually work as doctors NOT in training, treating patients daily and saving lives. Yet, they remain at the bottom of government priorities. How can a nation fail to prioritize those who heal its people, while pouring billions into an oversized Cabinet, an inflated Parliament, and a bloated RDC structure? Because this is not an issue for Ministry Health to sort alone. It must be deliberately managed from @mofpedU by @rggoobi. Some of these doctors pay the ultimate price for their service. The late Dr. Matthew Lukwiya, who died in 2000 after contracting Ebola while treating patients at Lacor Hospital, stands as a symbol of sacrifice and national duty. In 2021, the President directed that medical interns be paid UGX 2.5 million per month, translating to an annual cost of about UGX 67 billion. Yet even that directive was not implemented because interns now receive UGX 1.3 million, costing roughly UGX 40 billion annually. One of the things that frustrates me most is that I could look at any Ministerial Policy Statements and find this money. Seriously, I can. Contrast that with the government’s spending priorities: - RDCs and Assistant RDCs:  UGX 1.2 to 1.3 Trillion annually -Cabinet: UGX 550 billion annually -Parliament: UGX 1.35 trillion annually We have also lost our moral responsibilities. A government that underpays its doctors while rewarding political excess cannot claim to serve its people. Uganda’s budget priorities reveal a system that values political survival over public health, and prestige over productivity. The Commissioner from Ministry of Health even contradicts himself that interns will be treated as students but then in the 6th Year they will require practicing licenses. AND YES ALL OF THIS IS BECAUSE OF CORRUPTION EMBEDDED WITHIN THE GOVERNMENT AND ITS SYSTEMS AS A WHOLE. @mkainerugaba @TheUMAofficial @KagutaMuseveni.

@SoloKing02 You claim to have lost "your" twins at Soroti Regional Referral hospital due to poor medical conditions, now imagine what will happen if the peanut allowance given to medical interns is scrapped off!

I thank government for this hard wise decision to scrap off this allowance, we have interns in all fields but why segregate by paying others while leaving others. We welcome this decision and if to be reconsidered all interns from all fields must be considered

I genuinely believe Bruno is one of the most underappreciated people in Uganda. Despite everything, he continues to show kindness, support those in need, and use his platform to uplift others. Respect where it’s due.

Confirmed signatories include @DianaAtwine who is unfortunately also a medical doctor. Suspected to having been involved in proposing and drafting the policy.( this is called betrayal) Medical students #RejectinternshipPolicy

Ku Radio Maria Gabriel bamugambye penalty ajiddemu era najikuba mu bire 😂

our MPs during their induction were only concerned about the speed of approving their medical trips abroad, or whether they are allowed to travel with their spouses, etc..meanwhile the rest of the population that depends on medical interns isn’t their problem!

Someone asked: Are medical interns so special from other interns in different fields? The comparison is often misleading. Medical interns are not students. By the time one starts internship, they have already completed their degree and graduated as a doctor, pharmacist, nurse or dental surgeon. Internship is a mandatory supervised practice year before full licensure. Unlike many other fields where internships may last 1–2 months and are largely observational, medical internships run for a full year and involve direct patient care. Interns clerk patients, prescribe under supervision, assist in surgeries, conduct deliveries, respond to emergencies, review patients on wards, take overnight calls, and often work 36-72 hour shifts. Hospitals depend heavily on intern doctors and other health interns for service delivery. They are part of the workforce, not visitors learning from the sidelines. That is why the debate is not about paying students; it is about fairly compensating trained health professionals who are already providing essential healthcare services. #revisetheentiremedicalpolicy

Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen, May the favor of the Almighty God be with you all today and a blessed new week and month.

@SoloKing02 @oyet_okech Where ignorance is bliss, tis folly to be wise

@oyet_okech All interns go through the same buying food and others

This is sad. I stand with the Uganda Medical Association in condemning this move. #Reinstate medical interns allowance!

Dear members of the public, The medical fraternity is seeking your support. Your health and safety may be at risk due to this policy that want intern doctors working without pay. Why should this concern you? Intern doctors are a critical part of patient care. They often work long shifts, sometimes up to 36 hours, while handling emergencies, admissions, and ward duties. Expecting them to do this without any form of remuneration places immense physical, mental, and financial strain on them. A demoralized and overworked workforce increases the risk of burnout, errors, absenteeism, and even unethical practices born out of desperation. Ultimately, it is the patient who bears the consequences. This is not just a doctors' issue, it is a public health issue. We therefore call upon all stakeholders and members of the public to raise their voices and support the call for fair treatment of intern doctors. Say NO to unpaid internship. Protect healthcare. Protect patients. #revisetheentiremedicalpolicy

A hungry and angry Doctor is more dangerous than the disease itself. THIS MUST BE REJECTED. 📌