The University of Papua New Guinea Acting Chancellor Dr Nicholas Mann has commended the Academic Doctors at the School of Medicine and Health Sciences for letting common sense prevail.
The 30 clinical academic doctors resumed classes at midday on Tuesday January 31, after receiving their outstanding Awards payment of K5.5 million on Monday.
The academics stopped work on Wednesday, January 24 to give time for the Government to respond to their grievances over non-payment of their Awards dating back to January 1, 2014.
The National Doctors’ Awards benefits the academic doctors employed by the Department of Health and government hospitals.
The Awards is an agreement between the PNG National Doctors Association and the Government.
Dr Mann explained that any government organisation that employs doctors have the responsibility to do justice to that agreement.
He highlighted that the government is the funding agent that has to honour the agreement, while the university is a silent partner in this agreement just like other government organisation that employs doctors.Â
Vice Chancellor Professor Albert Mellam confirmed that the academic doctors returned to work almost immediately after their 12pm meeting on Tuesday.
Prof Mellam said the Government has honoured the Award which is an industrial matter between the government and NDA.
He said that the Award covers specifically the UPNG professors who are on call in hospitals and dealing directly with patients at the hospital.