By Frustrated by delays and unsuccessful attempts through various channels, Uganda’s medical interns have appealed directly to President Yoweri Museveni, urging his intervention to expedite the deployment of the remaining 1,327 medical interns. In a letter dated August 3, the interns requested that the President direct the Ministry of Health to facilitate their deployment and secure additional funding to support this process.
The letter stated: “We request you to direct the Ministry of Health to deploy the remaining 1,327 medical interns and to direct the Ministry of Finance to provide supplementary funding of UGX 18,813,600,000 to facilitate this directive.”
The interns also expressed their desire to meet with President Museveni for further discussions. They emphasized the critical importance of the internship for full registration and licensure to practice medicine in Uganda.
“Dear Your Excellency Gen. Yoweri K. Museveni,
While the internship is a mandatory part of medical training, it is surprising and unfortunate that this year, out of 2,706 applicants, only 1,263 (46.6%) were deployed on July 29, 2024, with an additional 116 deployed on August 6, 2024, making a total of 1,379 medical interns, which is 50.96% of the total applicants. This leaves 1,327 undeployed medical pre-interns in a hopeless state as it is only after the internship that we are fully registered, licensed, and able to practice. This number is far below the 1,926 deployed last year (2023) and the 1,614 deployed in 2022, despite an increase in the number of accredited internship training sites from 58 in 2023 to 73 in 2024.
Although the Ministry of Health recommends a ratio of one specialist to four interns at training sites, many sites have a ratio close to one specialist per intern. These include Mulago National Referral Hospital, Kiruddu National Referral Hospital, Kawempe National Referral Hospital (which, instead of having only 174 interns as deployed, should have about 240), and Mulago National Specialized Women’s and Neonatal Hospital. Additionally, some sites, including Kamuli, Kitgum, Bugiri, Kiryandongo, Yumbe, Apac, and Nakaseke General Hospital, have no medical intern doctors at all.
Furthermore, not all medical interns require specialists for their training, including nurses, pharmacists, and midwives. Therefore, the argument of insufficient specialists should not impede our deployment.
According to a press statement by the Minister of Health on August 2, 2024, an additional UGX 18,813,600,000 is required to deploy all eligible medical interns. The 1,327 pre-medical interns are looking forward to positive feedback from you, Your Excellency.”
The interns’ letter comes as Parliament and the Cabinet continue to deliberate on the issue. However, the medical interns have stressed the urgency of their situation, calling for swift action to address their concerns.
