On 30 May, Wemos and civil society partners held a policy debate on the WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel at the 77th World Health Assembly in Geneva. With around 60 representatives from member states’ governments and civil society organizations, attendees and panel speakers shared interesting insights and perspectives on how to make ‘the Code’ an effective instrument that truly promotes the rights of the health and care workforce.
With the fifth round of reporting and the launch of the third review of the relevance and effectiveness of the Code taking place this year, our event was a timely opportunity. Keynote speakers were Perpetual Ofori Ampofo (Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association), Dr. Balkiss Abdelmoula (World Medical Association / Junior Doctors Network Deputy Chair) and Herbert Beck (ver.di, Germany).
“Through the efforts of Public Services International, the unions advocated for a reintegration policy within the Ministry of Health and its agencies. Returning nurses who have migrated are able to have their knowledge and skills recognized when they return to the public health system. The policy is now embedded in union collective agreements in Ghana”, said Perpetual Ofori Ampofo, highlighting how civil society advocacy efforts can contribute to improving health workforce policy. Similarly, Herbert Beck highlighted the value of bilateral agreements, as pushed for by unions in Germany advocating for ethical partnerships for health worker recruitment. “Government-to-government agreements that incorporate the principles of the WHO Code and core labour standards are key to ensuring rights-based migration policies and promoting fair and ethical recruitment of health and care workers.”
Moderators Corinne Hinlopen (Wemos) and Genevieve Gencianos (Public Services International) at the World Health Assembly policy debate.
The session was co-moderated by global health advocate Corinne Hinlopen (Wemos). “It was not hard to moderate this group: participants were so eager to take the floor! And I was blown away by the experiences and testimonies they shared, whether it was the migrant doctor from Tunisia who did not really want to leave, but was offered so much more educational opportunity in Germany. Or the nurse from Sweden who told us they went on strike because they do not want to work (unpaid) overtime all the time and were then publicly denounced by government officials. Or the nurse from the Philippines who migrated to the UK and has recently published the results from his research into the mismatch between expectations and realities for Philippine nurses in the UK. And many more like these.
We urged all of them to share these experiences and publications with the WHO during this fifth round of reporting on the WHO Code. And this call to action was strongly echoed by WHO representative Agya Mahat in the room.”
Watch this video by Public Services International with some key moments from the event:
You can find more shared insights and pictures on the website of Public Services International.
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Photo credit: Public Services International via Flickr
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