Doctors begin resignation wave as PM insists health care is not his concern

More than 2,700 doctors from 34 hospitals plan to resign at the end of October, according to Peter Visolajský, head of the Doctors’ Trade Union Association (LOZ). He made the announcement outside the University Hospital in Bratislava on Tuesday.

“Things only start moving when resignations are on the table,” said the paediatrician.

The walkout stems from the Slovak government’s refusal to honour a 2022 memorandum promising salary increases for doctors. The agreement, negotiated with the then-government of Eduard Heger (OĽaNO, now Demokrati), outlined incremental pay rises which have now been shelved by the fourth Robert Fico administration.

Doctors are also demanding that more Slovak students be given the opportunity to study medicine in Slovakia, where currently 40 percent of medical students are foreign nationals. They are also calling for a reform of doctor certification processes and for an increase in the number of nurses in hospitals.

“We hope the government will see reason and that the prime minister will act in the coming days,” said Visolajský, repeating that resignations remain the only route to securing critical reforms in health care. “We are calling on the government to meet with us, ideally with the prime minister, to settle this matter without leaving Slovak hospitals short-staffed.”

Prime minister’s change of heart

Of the 6,000 doctors currently employed in Slovak hospitals, nearly half may be out of work from November 1. As many as 511 are quitting Bratislava’s University Hospital. Should Health Minister Kamil Šaško (Hlas) fail to reach a deal over pay increases in the coming two months, doctors could begin exiting en masse in January, potentially leaving Slovakia’s healthcare services in crisis.

The threat recalls the 2011 walkout under Prime Minister Iveta Radičová (SDKÚ), when more than 2,000 doctors left hospitals before a last-minute deal was reached. Emergency measures were needed, with military doctors and Czech practitioners brought in to fill the gap. In 2022, more than 2,100 doctors also resigned under Heger’s administration, causing delays to surgeries and prompting discussions on declaring a state of emergency before a last-minute deal was brokered.

Ironically, Fico, who previously backed doctors’ demands as an opposition politician, has since shifted his stance. Now prime minister, he maintains that health care is not within his remit and has delegated discussions to Šaško, who says he is prepared to negotiate during the doctors’ two-month notice period.

“Making threats with resignations and departures is not fair,” said Fico a few weeks ago, whose life was saved by doctors in May after an assassination attempt.

Third time

The 2022 memorandum - embraced by politicians across the political spectrum back then - had called for an annual 9.7 percent pay increase, yet Fico’s administration cut this to 3 percent amid fiscal tightening. Health Minister Šaško secured an additional €100m from Finance Minister Ladislav Kamenický (Smer), raising this year’s increase to 6.4 percent, but doctors are holding firm to the original figure.

Beyond salaries, doctors also hope to prevent hospitals from being transformed into joint-stock companies and support the establishment of a national hospital in Bratislava’s Rázsochy district instead of Ružinov. A new private hospital has been constructed near Rázsochy by the Penta financial group. A study co-funded by Penta has recommended building a new state hospital in Ružinov instead of Rázsochy.

“We’re embarrassed to be submitting resignations for the third time,” said Visolajský, adding that their demands remain the same as two years ago.

Health care strikes in Slovakia have a long history, dating back to the 1990s. In 2006, hospital staff went on strike demanding higher wages, blocking the transformation of hospitals into commercial entities, securing healthcare access for all, and increasing the health budget.