Unite The Union Consultants And Doctors In St Bernard's Hospital Statement
Medical Consultants and Doctors of Unite the Union say they are “deeply concerned” that the GHA and the Ministry of Health “feel empowered enough to toss aside hard working healthcare professionals and make serious assertions in the public eye”.
A statement from Unite follows below:
After a meeting of Medical Consultants and Doctors of Unite the Union it has been agreed to place forward the following statement:
As medical Healthcare Professionals in the GHA, we are deeply concerned on how colleagues in the gynaecology department have been treated by the GHA and Ministry of Health. While there has now been a mutually agreed resolution, which is very much welcomed and we echo previous remarks by Unite the Union that this is a step in the right direction. However, it is clear that the initial attempt to deny colleagues the opportunity to obtain rights of permanency under law by preventing continuous service beyond the four year mark shows the lack of respect and dignity afforded to staff by the employer. Other medical colleagues that are coming close to the four-year continuous employment mark are also now equally affected and worried about their future prospects in an organisation where they deliver a robust and honourable service. We are deeply concerned that the GHA and the Ministry of Health feel empowered enough to toss aside hard working healthcare professionals and make serious assertions in the public eye. In healthcare, we should always strive for eternal improvement of standards and care to service users.
The recent public attacks against some our colleagues can potentially have a negative impact and weaken services by demonstrating to those considering employment in the GHA not to do so, as it could lead to unfair professional slandering of staff who do not wish to have their hard worked reputations tarnished in such an uncaring and unwarranted fashion. Not only can it have this impact on the recruitment and retention of diligent employees, but it is also actively causing a significant impact on the well-being of existing staff and their morale. This unhealthy working environment undeniably impacts on the service that they deliver.
The extensive use of such contractual practices across the GHA’s healthcare professions is a cause of constant disruption to safe service delivery and to the continuity of care of our patients. In parallel, it causes great anxiety to staff who live in fear and uncertainty of their own status within an organisation in which they wish to provide a highly professional service to the community of Gibraltar.
Unite members amongst the Consultant and Hospital Doctors group lend our full support to all of the Midwifery, Nursing & other staff who have undertaken selective industrial action on these issues. We recognise that an injury to one is an injury to all. Therefore, we urge staff across all disciplines of healthcare in the Gibraltar Health Authority to continue to stand together against such unfair and unethical practices for the benefit of patients and staff alike.
