On the second and final day of the doctors’ strike in Lisbon and Vale do Tejo, the level of adhesions in operating rooms and medical centers was 90% by 9:30 a.m., a union source told Lusa.
Speaking to Lusa, the general secretary of the Independent Union of Doctors (SIM), which called for the strike, said data available as of 9:30 am indicated 90% adherents to the strike in operating theatres, health centers and hospitals. consultations from 75 to 80%.
“The first available data indicate a slight increase in the number of participants in the strike, namely in the Santarem hospital, in the D. Estefania hospital, in Lisbon and in the Abrantes hospital, where the units are completely closed,” said Jorge Roque da Cunha.
According to the Secretary General of SIM, 90% of the operating rooms are closed at the Professor Dutor Fernando Fonseca Hospital (Amadora Sintra), and 80% at the Santa Maria Hospital in Lisbon.
“In external consultations they are also close to 80%, and in relation to primary health care – close to 90%. These data are a sign of the dissatisfaction of doctors and the validity of their claims,” he emphasized.
Roque da Cunha recalled that the regional strike in Lisbon is the culmination of a series of strikes that doctors have been carrying out since July, when a nationwide strike took place.
“We are ready to negotiate. We ask the Ministries of Health and Finance to pay attention to the situation of doctors (…). If they don’t listen to us, we can go back to this form of struggle. we want. Let’s get together for a week and unfortunately we will probably have to continue protests like this,” he said.
The second two-day strike by doctors in Lisbon and Vale do Tejo began at 00:00 on Wednesday and covered hospitals and health centers that were not covered by the strike that took place on September 13 and 14.
The regional strike organized by SIM, which will last until 24:00 this Thursday, covers the hospital centers of Northern Lisbon, Central Lisbon, Western Lisbon, Western Lisbon, Medio Tagus and the Dutor Fernando Fonseca Hospital (Amadora Sintra) in Santarem, the Hospital of the Armed Forces and Caxias Prison Hospital.
According to SIM, the National Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Medicine of the South, the Portuguese Institute of Blood and Transplantation (IPST) and the Division of Intervention in Addictive Behavior and Dependency (DICAD) of the Regional Health Directorate of Lisbon and Tagus Valley.
The two-day strike also includes doctors from groups of medical centers (ACES) of Northern Lisbon, Central Lisbon, Oeste and Oeiras, Amadora, Sintra, Oeste Norte, Oeste Sul, Medio Tagus and Leziria.
According to SIM, the strike aims to demand the government “an effective response” to the union’s list of demands, and that the finance and health ministers present “a proposal for a wage scale that will replace the losses accumulated due to inflationary erosion” . last decade and this places the entire medical profession, including interns, with honor and fairness on a single civil service remuneration table.”
The minimum services required during a regional medical strike are established in the collective labor regulations in force in the SNS, says SIM.
Negotiations between doctors’ unions and the Ministry of Health began in 2022, but there has been no agreement yet.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
I’m Tifany Hawkins, a professional journalist with years of experience in news reporting. I currently work for a prominent news website and write articles for 24NewsReporters as an author. My primary focus is on economy-related stories, though I am also experienced in several other areas of journalism.