People have often blamed poor utilization of services or should I say less than optimum utilization of services on health worker attitudes. This is true especially for maternal health services indeed some women have opted to give birth at home rather than face the wrath of health workers. It makes you wish that having a good attitude was something you could purchase and give to a health worker. As we all know it is not that easy. Some of us blame them for having a poor attitude, while some of us are more empathic and understand their situation.

There is a saying that “do not blame someone who falls under a given load until you have carried the same burden” There are several circumstances that contribute to health workers having a poor attitude. One of the most common ones is a heavy workload. I recall working from 8:00 am to midnight as an intern doctor in one of the peadiatric wards.  Iam sure my attitude was not as good as it could have been through out the day, there is a way exhaustion can wipe a smile off your face. In some cases the health workers don’t have the equipment or supplies that they need and they are forced to turn away patients, but when the patients don’t seem to understand this situation the health worker might end up being labeled a health worker with a bad attitude.

 Last week I recall being at the hospital and seeing a health worker try her best to explain to the client the procedures of the hospital and the reason why they could not see the doctor as scheduled in the appointment. The client simply kept on complaining and refused  to accept any kind of explanation finally the health worker just walked away. I thought that was really rude, but then on the other hand the health worker really tried to explain. However iam not trying to defend health workers who have a bad attitude believe me some of them really do have a bad attitude.

Unmarried adolescents are some of the groups who often receive a poor reception from health workers who believe they should not be engaging in premarital sex, women who have had too many children or who lack the basic necessities of life have also often complained of poor treatment. In all these scenarios you ask yourself who is to blame  for these attitudes but perhaps the more important question is    What are some of the things that could be done to improve the attitudes of health workers?. Some suggestions that I have come across include

• Client handling trainings to reinforce positive attitudes and reduce negative ones
• Regular support supervision sessions to encourage respectful handling of patients
• Solving the root causes such as inadequate staffing, poor remuneration and lack of adequate supplies
• Recruiting and training health workers who have an intrinsic desire to help the sick

What do you suggest we should do to improve the attitude of health workers? Of course apart from giving them an injection  with the drug good attitude.  Iam looking forward to hearing from you.

References

1. Abubakar AA. Making of a young champion . Institute of international education.
2. Gabrysch S Campbell  OMR ( 2009) Still too far to walk: Literature review of the determinants of delivery service use BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 9:34
3. Kambala C , Morse  T, Masangwi S, Mitunda P ( 2011) Barriers to maternal health service use in Chikhwawa, Southern Malawi. Malawi Medical Journal; 23(1): 1-5
4. Tilahun M, Mengistie B,  Egata G,  and Ayalu A, Reda A ( 2012),. Health workers' attitudes toward sexual and reproductive health services for unmarried adolescents in Ethiopia. Reproductive Health.  9:19