PM Skerrit announces direct salary payments for 16 DCFH doctors through Health Ministry

Dominica: Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has announced that Dominica’s Ministry of Health will take responsibility for paying the salaries of 16 doctors employed by the Dominica-China Friendship Hospital (DCFH), following concerns over their September wages.

The announcement came after Skerrit met with doctors and other stakeholders on Wednesday, October 14, 2026, to discuss concerns raised by healthcare professionals at the hospital.

In the aftermath of the meeting, which was attended by several stakeholders from the Ministry of Health, Dominica-China Friendship Hospital and other organisations, the government has announced that it will be paying the salaries for the 16 doctors employed within the DCFH.

The meeting was attended by Thomas Letang, General Secretary of the Dominica Public Service Union DPSU, Dr. Diane Robinson Amor, President of the Dominica Medical Association, Dr. Kenneth Darroux, Chief Executive Officer of the Dominica Hospitals Authority.

The government made the decision to pay the salaries of the 16 doctors directly through the Ministry of Health after doctors raised concerns and public claims were made by the United Workers Party (UWP) representative Thompson where he claimed that doctors had taken action after going unpaid for several months.

PM Skerrit addressed the members of the general public in the aftermath of the meeting on Wednesday and clarified that only 16 doctors who were working with the Dominica-China friendship hospital, and were directly employed by the Hospital Authority missed their salaries for the month of September. The Prime Minister has rejected the claim that doctors across the public health sector had gone unpaid over the course of months.

The Prime Minister has further confirmed that in order to solve the issue the Ministry of Health will pay the salaries of the sixteen doctors on behalf of the hospital authority. The payment of the salary will be made starting October 2026.

The Prime Minister has also further confirmed that the other doctors apart from these 16 professionals did not face any issues with their salaries. The salaries for all the doctors are paid directly by the Ministry of Health.

The sixteen doctors who were facing issues with the salaries will also be paid by the Ministry of health starting October 2026.

The government has further announced that the cheques for the September salaries of the 16 doctors have been sent to the Hospital Authority. The payments are being transferred to the banks of the recipients.