"We can't close the shifts," I'm told daily by many hospital departments. Clearly, the local health authorities are struggling the most, but the situation is also complicated in Cagliari and Sassari," says Susanna Montaldo, regional secretary of Anaao Assomed.
It's summer for everyone, and even doctors deserve some time off. But when absences are compounded by chronic staff shortages, and in a time of genuine emergency—when demand for care and assistance increases, both due to the presence of tourists and the high temperatures that put the most vulnerable segments of the population at particular risk—the system collapses. "Some colleagues are forgoing the two weeks they're entitled to under their contracts, those without young children are postponing their holidays until the fall, or even splitting them up. In any case, those who work have an impressive workload," Montaldo emphasizes.
The list of facilities struggling and unable to cover employee vacations is long. To give a few examples: Ozieri Hospital; Oristano: Oncology, Internal Medicine, Radiology, and the Blood Transfusion Center; Carbonia: the Emergency Room, Surgery, and Medicine; Brotzu: Radiology (shifts are covered with additional services) and Urology, where, they report, seven specialists have been lost in one year. At the AOU in Sassari: Neurosurgery, Medical Pathology, Emergency Medicine, and Cardiac Surgery; Alghero: Rehabilitation and the Pediatric Clinic; and Lanusei: several departments are closed, according to Anaao. The Emergency Room, Radiology, Oncology, and Dialysis are also experiencing significant disruption.
With the holidays – the union warns – over the next five weeks, a further 20% shortage of doctors is estimated, compared to the already difficult current situation.
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