Medical trade unionists presented proposals and demands that they consider necessary to improve the condition of hospitals in Slovakia to the Prime Minister Eduard Heger last week.
According to the head of the Medical Trade Union (LOZ) Peter Visolajský, almost 3,000 out of the approximately 5,000 hospital doctors signed them. They include:
1. Ensuring that hospitals receive payments from health insurance companies.
2. Increasing the number of doctors, nurses and midwives to ensure quality health care for patients, and guaranteeing these numbers by law.
3. Abolishing humiliating and discriminatory non-monetary compensation.
4. Supporting medical faculties so that they can produce more high-quality Slovak doctors.
5. Reforming the training of young doctors.
6. Not closing departments in hospitals until there is a proportionate increase in hospital staffing in those departments that are to take over health care for the closed departments or hospitals.
7. Increasing the wages of health workers and improve Slovakia's competitiveness with neighboring countries.
The unions also demand the construction of the Razsochy hospital in Bratislava and the issue of a reform of medical education. Doctors have warned that despite the pandemic, health workers have been hearing only promises from the Government for the past two years, but they lack solutions. LOZ said that the meeting was factual and constructive. "The prime minister welcomed the proposals, acknowledged the need for them and promised a willingness to work to meet them. We subsequently agreed that there would be another meeting within two weeks, where the premier and the ministries concerned will give an opinion on these requirements," said Visolajsky.
In his reaction, PM Heger said that "the Slovak health sector has been neglected for a long time by former governments. We have money available from the recovery plan. We have set specific goals and we are taking gradual steps to ensure that the healthcare system works well for the benefit of both the medical staff and patients," Heger said.
Source: TASR
