The Botswana Nurses Union has called on the nurses and midwives to completely use their private time and ignore calls for duty. This directive has come from the union after the nurses and the administration have come into a difference of opinion.
The union has urged the nurses and midwives to follow this directive till the time that the Ministry of Health agrees to negotiate. The Botswana Nurses Union wants to discuss the development of a framework and guidelines for on-call duty. The union says the on-call duty is unlawful and inhuman as it leaves the nurses and midwives with little to no self time.
This sentiment has also been agreed upon by the Court of Appeal of Botswana. The officials haves shared that the court believes that the members of the nursing fraternity should not be forced to be bound by the on-call rules.
The infringement of the nurses’ personal time and family life is becoming a cause of contention among the Ministry of Health and the Nurses Union. The officials have shared that they are protesting the guidelines of the on call duty.
On paper, on call duty means that the nurses that are on call, need to report for their duty as and when needed. However, the Botswana Nurses Union claimed that there is no legal requirement for them to stay close to their workstations. The Union believes that this is their free time, and they can travel and use their time as per their understanding
According to the on-call guidelines, the nurses only must answer the call for duty. After this, they must inform the Health Ministry about their current location and then they are responsible for transport
The officials have shared that it is not the responsibility of the nurses to use their personal resources and transportation to travel to the hospital. The officials have shared that the Ministry has to make the arrangements to help the nurses to attend to their duties.