A two-hour-a-shift strike by nurses on Monday resulted in zero turnout in some services but 100% in others, said the union, which called for an indefinite strike.
“Adherence is not uniform. We have services that are 100% adherent, services that are 50% adherent and services where adherence is zero,” said Luce, vice-president of the Portuguese Nursing Association (ASPE).
This Monday, nurses began an indefinite strike, lasting two hours per shift on weekdays, in local health facilities in São João and Santo António (Porto), Coimbra, Santa Maria and São José (Lisbon).
According to Alvara Silva, internal medicine services registered the highest demand, given that this is where the “greatest difficulties and workload” are, while the lowest level was observed in surgical services.
“There is a lot of pressure to continue to respond to medical and surgical activity, and membership has declined,” admitted an ASPE vice president for whom membership is not “an issue that concerns” the union structure.
The union association expects a higher turnout on Tuesday than today, a union leader said, stressing that this strike is “different from others and this model has never been used among nurses.”
“The truth is that very few nurses can be absent from work, since the number of nurses considered the minimum in this strike is similar to the normal daily number,” said Alvara Silva.
The strike, which takes place on the morning shift from 9:30 to 11:30 and on the afternoon shift from 16:30 to 18:30, is aimed, among other things, at demanding an update of wages, an end to restrictions on career advancement and a minimum quota of 35% for specialist nurses.
Minimum services are guaranteed for emergency and urgent medical care within two hours, as well as for ongoing treatment with chemotherapy, radiotherapy, blood and blood products, and antibiotics.
The strike covers medical centers and hospitals (outpatient consultations, hospitalizations, imaging services and other diagnostic or therapeutic tests).