Attendance at the Upper East Regional Hospital in Bolgatanga has declined as a result of the strike by the Health Services Workers' Union (HSWU) of the Trade Union Congress (TUC).

The HSWU is on nationwide strike over government's inability to implement their collective agreement and improve on their condition of service.

When the Ghana News Agency visited the regional hospital on Thursday, it was observed that attendance by clients to the hospital had declined drastically.

The Open Patient Department (OPD) which is usually full to capacity was virtually empty.

Ms Mary Kalim, the Deputy Director in charge of Nursing Services at the Regional Hospital, in an interview said only members of the HSWU were on strike but clinicians, including all categories of nurses and medical doctors were still at post and rendering health services to clients.

Ms Kalim explained that HSWU which included; record officers, accountants, supply chain officers, procurement officers among others were critical to the effective administration and their absence was the cause of decline in attendance.

She said although management of the hospital was turning away clients, some of the clients were advised to seek healthcare services at private facilities although the quality of care they would receive might not be the same.

The Deputy Director said the clinicians were still working as normal including admission of patients, where necessary but the absence of members of the HSWU was slowing down the progress of work.

"We are employing paperless system, so if the record officers are not there to check on the folders of patients and the status of the National Health Insurance Scheme Card, we only try to write the key information on paper until they return," he lamented.

Mr Ziblim Abdul-Latif, the Regional first Vice Chairman of the HSWU, noted that the Union did not find joy in striking as the impact of their action would adversely affect healthcare delivery across the country.

He explained that failure by government to implement the Collective Agreement the Union had with it in 2016 regarding their condition of service made them to feel unimportant.

He said leaders of the Union had several engagements with the government but it had turned a deaf ear to their plight and that prompted them to temporary withdraw their services.