The strike will take place in all hospitals around the country, and as part of it, the interns will work in a Shabbat format.
The interns 'organization "Prescription" announced today (Wednesday) that the interns' strike will take effect this coming Monday (December 12), in all hospitals across the country.
As part of the strike, the interns will work in a Shabbat format.
According to the "Prescription" organization, the strike is underway "in light of the fact that the Minister of Health has not yet ordered the start of pilots to shorten shifts in hospitals, and at the same time the permit allowing the interns to employ 26-hour shifts has been extended."
Prescription Chairman Dr. Ray Bitton said: "We are taking advantage of our commitment to patients, and taking advantage of the fact that we are collapsing under the burden and we have no time to take care of ourselves. So today we are saying no more. We are seventy from useless promises. We demand a shortening of shifts now. "
As you may recall, on Tuesday it was published in "Israel Today" that according to the recommendations of the committee for examining the format of doctors' shifts, in most medical professions, shifts that specialize will be shortened from 26 hours to 12-16 hours.
This is a particularly significant shortening of about half the length of the shift.
Despite this, it seems that the shifts of the surgery and intensive care professions will not be shortened at all.
The emerging recommendations are neither formal nor final.
They are yet to change and should be published only at the end of January 2021.
It also appears that the committee will recommend that the shortening of shifts be done in three different models.
According to one model, the specialist doctor will start the shift at 11pm at night until 11am the next morning.
Another model offers one week a month where there will be two interns who will catch the shifts during the day, 12 hours each.
In addition, a recommendation is being formulated to increase the number of devices for physician assistants and medical secretaries to 24 hours a day in order to further facilitate the work of the doctors on duty.
The significance of the recommendations, if fully accepted, is a reform in the employment of physicians in all hospitals in Israel, which is expected to have a dramatic impact on the quality and availability of medical care.
According to the committee's estimates, in order to implement the recommendations, it will be necessary to massively budget the hospitals in an amount estimated at hundreds of millions of shekels, in order to dramatically increase medical staff and standards.
According to data from the health system, 7,700 physicians specializing in hospitals and health funds currently work in Israel.
