“Overflowing schedules” and 68-hour weeks: Ibiza doctors denounce “burnout” in the middle of strike

The overload of care in Ibiza is at the center of the doctors’ protests during the statewide strike. Primary care and hospital physicians work with more than 2,200 health cards per professional, a volume that, according to what they warn, has returned to levels of a decade ago and that is combined with weeks that can exceed 68 hours of activity. The professionals assure that this situation ends up generating “overflowing” agendas, delays in clinical follow-up and an accumulated fatigue that directly affects care. This is what they have expressed in Ibiza, in front of Can Misses hospital, during the second day of the four-day scheduled strike.

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Chained guards and health care risk

One of the points most repeated by the doctors of Ibiza is the model of 24-hour shifts, which in many cases are chained with the ordinary working day. The spokesman for Simebal in the Pitiusas, Carlos Rodríguez, summed it up during the concentration in front of Can Misses: “Doing such exhaustive shifts as we are doing seems undignified, not only for us, but also for the patients”. The doctors explain that the fatigue accumulates and leaves the professionals at the limit, increasing the possibility of errors in moments of high pressure. “There are many doctors with burnout, they are burned out,” said Rodríguez in statements picked up by IB3.

The medical profession insists that the draft Framework Statute presented by the Ministry does not incorporate the specificity of the profession or limit long working hours. The lack of their own negotiating framework, they point out, leaves them in a clear minority within the sectoral tables. According to Simebal, the current situation “does not guarantee decent breaks” and maintains working conditions that most consider unsustainable.

The protest at Can Misses

In Ibiza, the second day of the strike had a follow up of 85% in the hospital area, with doctors concentrated at the doors of Can Misses showing messages about exhaustion and risk for patients. In Primary Care, participation was lower due to the pressure of care derived from the flu outbreak, which forced to maintain reinforced activity to ensure the minimum care.

According to data provided by Ib Salut, the strike has had a direct impact on the health activity of the last two days in the pitiusas, with the cancellation of 28 operations, 149 hospital consultations, 54 radiological tests and 24 diagnostic tests, in addition to 634 Primary Care consultations.

Impact on healthcare activity

The strike in the Balearic Islands reproduced the figures of the first day: paralysis of non-urgent surgery, rescheduling of consultations and saturated consultations in the ER. According to the union, the climate of overflow is aggravated by the lack of rest and the accumulation of administrative tasks. The doctors, who have apologized to the public for the inconvenience, insist that they are demanding working conditions that allow them to work safely.

The Regional Minister of Health, Manuela García, charged against the central government by stating that “the Balearic citizens are going to be the ones who pay the consequences of this inability to manage by the government of Sánchez and the Minister of Health”. Meanwhile, the Ministry called an urgent meeting with the unions with the aim of reopening the dialogue.