Staff on vacation, 73% compromised health care in Sardinian hospitals

With a third of doctors going on holiday, the summer in Sardinian hospitals is confirmed to be challenging. And there are many employees who increase the volume of work to make up for staff shortages between June and September.

According to the report by the Federation of hospital internists (Fadoi), many work extra to cover night shifts and 21% skip weekly rest periods . Despite the commitment, however , outpatient activities decrease in 31.5% of cases and close completely in 5% of Sardinian hospitals, while overall the quality of health care , also required in the summer, is significantly compromised in 73% of cases . A situation that mirrors what also happens in a large part of the departments of other medical specialties. Even if, as specified by the president of Fadoi, Francesco Dentali, "in internal medicines, the shortages of staff that are accentuated in the summer rest period make the picture more critical due to the fact that our departments are still erroneously classified as "low intensity of care", which in no way reflects the complexity of the elderly patients with multiple morbidities that we usually treat in our operating units, which alone absorb a fifth of all hospital admissions. And this anachronistic classification of medicines internal already implies a lower endowment of technologies, doctors and nurses per bed, which becomes explosive in the summer period, when our staff also enjoys a well-deserved rest».

And with doctors taking advantage of the 15 days of vacation in the summer period - as guaranteed by the national employment contract - there is a reduction in staff in the ward which varies between 21 and 30% in 63% of cases, between 30 and 50% in 15% of wards, while the shortage is between 11 and 20% in 20% of cases. For those who stay, the volume of work increases in 58% of cases and this affects "sufficiently" the assistance offered to citizens in 52% of hospitals, "a lot" in another 21%, "little" in 10% of wards and "not at all" in 15%. Outpatient activities pay the highest price, reducing their activities in 31.5% of cases and closing completely in another 5% of hospitals. Another 36% instead guarantees the invariance in the number and timing of the activities in the outpatient clinics, which are remodulated in the timing but unchanged in the number of services again in 26% of cases.

(Unioneonline/vf)