The Overlord of the Mamprugu Traditional Area, Nayiri Bohagu Abdulai Mahami Sheriga, has appealed to the government to increase the number of health professionals posted to the North East Region to address persistent staff shortages at health facilities.

He said the shortage was undermining healthcare delivery in the region and called on the Regional Health Directorate to introduce measures to attract and retain health workers.

“The North East is a deprived region and it is about time health workers stayed to support its growth,” the Nayiri said.

He made the call when the Acting Regional Director of Health Services, Dr Joyce Emakayor Bening, paid a courtesy call on him at his palace in Nalerigu, the regional capital, on Thursday.

The visit formed part of Dr Bening’s engagements with key stakeholders to formally introduce herself and seek their support and blessings after assuming office.

The Nayiri said the absence of health professionals at some health facilities was worrying, particularly in a region carved out of the Northern Region that continued to face significant development challenges.

He urged the Regional Health Directorate to explore effective incentives to encourage health workers to remain in the region and serve its growing population.

Nayiri Sheriga also urged health professionals across the country to consider the North East a priority when postings were made, stressing that residents deserved equal access to quality healthcare.

He expressed the hope that Dr Bening, the first woman to occupy the position since the creation of the region, would stay long enough to make a lasting impact on healthcare delivery.

“Directors come and go, so you must do well to ensure that healthcare delivery in the region improves,” he told her.

The Nayiri assured Dr Bening of his full support and urged her not to hesitate to seek his intervention whenever necessary.

Dr Bening, for her part, assured the Nayiri that she would work closely with traditional authorities and other stakeholders to address challenges confronting healthcare delivery in the region.

She said she would continue to engage the Nayiri on key health issues requiring his support and collaboration.

Dr Bening said improving the quality of healthcare delivery remained her top priority and pledged to work with all stakeholders to achieve that objective.

As part of her stakeholder engagements, she also visited the North East Regional Minister and the Regional Director of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) to introduce herself and discuss issues affecting healthcare delivery in the region.