Doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals are holding a joint 24-hour strike in the Algarve today, in protest against the shortage of professionals and the deterioration of working conditions.
The strike covers all health professionals working in the National Health Service ( SNS ) in the region, who are demanding, among other things, the hiring of more staff to stop the burnout they say they are being subjected to.
According to healthcare professionals, exhaustion and worsening working conditions create consequences for patients.
"Requests for dismissal and termination of employment contracts occur almost daily, and in many services, there is a decrease in the number of professionals per shift," the professionals lamented in a joint statement.
In turn, the president of the Algarve Local Health Unit (ULS), Tiago Botelho, told Lusa news agency that he did not understand the reasons given for the strike, considering that, at its origin, there are union structures that act for political reasons.
The strike, scheduled for between 00:00 and 24:00, was called by the Southern Zone Doctors' Union (SMZS-FNAM), the Portuguese Nurses' Union (SEP) and the Union of Public Service Workers of the South and Autonomous Regions.
Source https://postal.pt/
