Medical consultants threaten to continue sick out

By Kimone Witter/Racquel Porter    

 

Government medical consultants have warned that they will continue their sick out on Tuesday if the government fails to respond to their concerns regarding the delay in the payment of retroactive salaries.

 

The doctors called in sick on Monday, resulting in disruptions to clinical services at public hospitals, including the University Hospital of the West Indies, and health centres.

 

The outstanding payments cover the period April 1, 2022 to December 2024 when the consultants began receiving their new salaries under the public sector compensation review.

 

Speaking with Radio Jamaica News on Monday afternoon, Executive member and spokesperson for the association of government medical consultants, Dr. Myrton Smith, said the government has not yet responded to Monday's protest. 

 

"This position that we're in now, it was not taken lightly because you would have known that over the years, certainly the consultant group, we have not been, you know, one of the groups that has been very militant and in the media in this way. However, I think our patience as a group has kind of worn thin, and there's a general feeling of a lack of appreciation for what we do and the role that we play in the sector, and we think that that is reflected in the response that we've gotten from the Ministry of Finance," Dr. Smith lamented. 

 

He said the action will continue for a second straight day if a response is not forthcoming. 

 

"So we're hoping that they will reconsider and that they will reach out to us so that we can have further discussion, so that we can start to improve our mental health. I suspect that tomorrow the members will continue to recuperate and to try to centre themselves and regain good mental health," he said. 

 

Finance Minister Fayval Williams had announced last month that $1.7 billion had been set aside in the current budget to settle outstanding wage claims for several health sector groups, including medical consultants.

 

But in its latest offer which has been rejected by the consultants, the Ministry of Finance said it would be able to settle the outstanding sums during the April to June period or the first quarter of the new fiscal year.

 

Meanwhile, the opposition has called for the government to pay public health workers, following the latest action by medical consultants to withdraw their services over salary issues.

 

The doctors want the government to pay retroactive sums due to them, before the end of March.

 

The Ministry of Finance has indicated that it can make the payment in the new fiscal year, over the period April to June.

 

But, the consultants have rejected the offer, noting that parliamentarians and other groups have received their monies while they have been forced to wait. 

 

"It is deeply troubling that while the government swiftly approved and paid themselves salary increases, including retroactive payment, our medical consultants, the very professionals tasked with saving lives, are left waiting for what they are rightfully owed," lamented Opposition Spokesperson on Health Dr. Alfred Dawes, who called the situation a "glaring inequality" that was an insult to the healthcare workers and the Jamaican people who depend on them.  

 

"Medical consultants are the cornerstone of our healthcare system. Their expertise, dedication and leadership are vital to the delivery of quality care. Yet they are forced to take this drastic action because the government has failed to honour its commitment to them for over three years," Dr. Dawes complained.