Mater Dei Faces ‘Chaos’ As Doctors Ordered To Stop Outsourcing To Private Hospitals
Doctors at Mater Dei hospital have been ordered to stop transferring patients to private hospitals after an industrial dispute resulted from mismanagement and miscommunication.
An email sent by the hospital’s management allegedly forbid members of the union from advising patients or directly transferring them to private hospitals, instead, they must “admit all patients to Mater Dei,” according to Times of Malta.
This dispute comes following the recently unveiled partnership between Mater Dei and three private hospitals to supposedly streamline operations and reduce waiting times, as announced by the Health Ministry.
The management was reported as having “violated signed agreements” without consulting the The Medical Association of Malta (MAM), ultimately leading to “chaos.”
The news portal reported that according to the union, “numerous irregularities” in the management haven’t been uncommon, as well as bad working conditions which led to the resignation of multiple general practitioners.
MAM reported that it was not consulted on the aforementioned outsourcing initiative, claiming that no written consent was given to any partnership with private hospitals.
As the situation unfolds, the hospital faces a strain on services and “unacceptably long” waiting times, with doctors “not being given their leave” either.
What do you make of this situation?
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