Doctors' strike with 80% participation
The national doctors' strike, called by the National Federation of Doctors (FNAM) on October 24, had a significant participation of around 80% throughout the country, causing severe constraints in operating rooms, where only emergency services remained open.
In a statement, the FNAM accuses Health Minister Ana Paula Martins of "lying off the record" to members of the National Assembly by assuring them that she would not move forward with measures to force doctors to move. "Ana Paula Martins has lost the trust of doctors and the country," the federation denounces, adding that if Luís Montenegro keeps the minister in office, "he will be complicit in this lack of truth and disrespect for healthcare professionals."
The FNAM also warns of the risks of the regional emergency obstetrics services model, stressing that it "does not serve doctors or the population," as it "forces pregnant women and babies to travel long distances, with the real danger of births in ambulances."
The federation justifies the strike as a “fight for the dignity and future of the National Health Service (SNS)”, demanding “respect and conditions that guarantee a public, universal and quality SNS”.
According to the FNAM, the doctors were "pushed into this strike by the intransigence of Minister Ana Paula Martins and the Government of Luís Montenegro", who continue to "refuse to negotiate fair wages and decent working conditions in the NHS".
The union structure reaffirms that it maintains its proposals within the scope of the review of the Collective Bargaining Agreements and rejects any “labor setback”, such as “the introduction of time banks, shift work, the increase in the annual limit for overtime or the change in the age to cease night and emergency work”.
“We are ready to improve the working conditions of all doctors and guarantee the clinical safety of professionals and patients,” concludes FNAM.
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