General strike in Usakiditza: live | Many health centers in Vitoria stopped carrying out tests in the first hours of the strike in Osakaditza

The SATSE, ELA, LAB, CCOO and UGT unions called a strike on Monday 28 February at the Osakidetza complex. With this strike, the second after the one recorded on Friday that affected primary care, central unions are calling on the Basque government to improve public health such as structural improvements and an increase in the workforce. The call for strikes extends, on this occasion, to the entire Basque Country public health network: hospitals, emergency or mental health network, among other services, as well as to primary care; The area of ​​public health in the Basque Country is worst affected. The strike will not affect the services related to the epidemic, i.e. vaccination, examination and extraction, as the Urkullu Cabinet has set the minimum services for one hundred percent; As well as in points of continuous care (PAC), emergencies and cleaning.

The Satse Nursing Union describes the response to the strike in Vitoria hospitals as “good”. He reiterates that the complementary tests performed on the seventh floor of Txagorritxu and all scheduled surgeries stopped at 100%. In health centres, the nursing staff at the Olaguíbel, Olárizu and Havana clinics are the most likely to join the protest.

Health professionals at HUA Txagorritxu recall that at 12 noon a demonstration will leave from Santiago Hospital to this hospital center to demand improvements in public health and an increase in the workforce.

The protest of health workers, demanding better working conditions and an increase in the number of workers, was also noted in Olarizo, where all the nurses stopped. This morning, monitoring of the strike in primary care was much lower than it was on Friday, something unions attribute to the proximity of the two calls.

HUA Txagorritxu breathes calm on the outside. However, behind closed doors, a sense of strike had already begun. According to the first statistics, in operating rooms work is carried out only on interventions that are not delayed, “those that are more dangerous than urgent”, and complementary examinations are completely closed. Follow-up on first counted services is “70% among those who may strike,” with minimal services excluded.

HUA Txagorritxu Entrance. /

John Under Goetia

Tranquility in the corridors of Salborwa Health Center. Despite the minimal services, the atmosphere inside the clinic is not as soulless as it was last Friday, when the strike exclusively affected primary care. The movement of people is continuous and there are no queues. At this time, there are people in the waiting rooms, as well as a medical staff of nurses, family medicine and pediatrics, but there is only one person at the reception desk.

Osakidetza workers from all centers in Alava were called in today to support a day of strike, and the second after that on Friday paralyzed much of primary care, which unions expect to be “historic”. In Vitoria, the first accidents are beginning to be noticed and there are many health centers that have stopped conducting tests. It happened, for example, in the center of Olaguíbel, where there are queues of patients who want to order another appointment form.