The unions want to meet with the new health minister to discuss “issues that need to be resolved.” In this sense, there are those who call for a change in strategy compared to the previous government, to avoid “manipulations” and “games behind the scenes.”
With the introduction of the new government last Thursday, unions have now begun to prepare for negotiations with the relevant ministries. In this sense, the health sector is no exception, and union leaders stress the urgent need to solve a series of problems.
In an interview with RTP3, the Secretary General of the Independent Doctors Union highlighted issues such as the number of users without a family doctor and waiting times at SNS as “problems to solve”.
The president of the National Federation of Doctors, Joana Bordallo y Sa, spoke to the same station and called on the new Minister of Health, Ana Paula Martins, to “give priority to dialogue with doctors.” In this sense, he reiterates the necessity of quickly opening “serious and transparent” negotiations, in addition to the necessity of avoiding “manipulations” and “backstage games,” which he says were the “strategy” of previous negotiations. government when Manuel Pizarro was in charge of the portfolio.
The president of the nurses' union, Luis Barreras, highlights “urgent changes”, among which is the “evaluation” of these professionals. In this context, in statements to RTP3, he also asked the minister to sit at the negotiating table with the unions, with the aim of “reviewing the salary scale, nurses’ career path, and working conditions.”
The head of the Doctors' Union, Carlos Cortes, said that the priority is to get to know the ministry's team, but above all “the government program in the field of health, the policies that will be defined, and the ability to implement it.” He said, in an interview with RTP3.
“Writer. Analyst. Avid travel maven. Devoted twitter guru. Unapologetic pop culture expert. General zombie enthusiast.”
