Stock image. Hundreds of pediatricians in Slovakia have resigned from the outpatient emergency service. (source: SME - Marko Erd)
As of June 30, more than 300 paediatricians across Slovakia filed a resignation from the outpatient emergency services (APS) in a coordinated action.
Doctors say several reasons have forced them to take the step, citing excessive workload and insufficient numbers of doctors, among other things. Currently, there are 980 paediatricians.
According to them, every fifth one is missing in the health system. The low number is associated with their age, with every second of those who work in the retirement age. After one doctor leaves, their patients are transferred to those who still work.
Moreover, once the daily work of these paediatricians is over, they move on to provide outpatient emergency services.
"Doctors at retirement age - 70- and 80-year-olds - come home after work before 23:00 and the next morning treat patients in clinics. They do not have adequate rest," says the Health Ministry.
Paediatricians say that their capacities are not bottomless and they need time to sleep and rest. They also do not provide their services voluntarily, as every one working in an outpatient clinic is required to do so.
"We are not asking for anything other than what goes without saying for you - compliance with the Labour Code, respect for working hours, the right to rest after work and the right to health protection," reads the statement of the paediatricians.
The problem is also the excessive load at outpatient emergency services. Up to 70 percent of cases are problems that do not require an immediate solution, doctors say. According to them, education on how to deal with minor illnesses and injuries would help in this regard.
The Health Ministry is communicating with the paediatricians.
