Medical technicians withdraw services, block roads

Panama's government  has been hit by another wave of protests in the medical services field.

Nursing technicians who called a 48 hour withdrawal of services on Wednesday April 11, warned of an indefinite extension if no solution was reached by 6pm April 12.

On Thursday protestors increased Panama city’s traffic congestion with a partial closure of Transístmica. The protesters are calling for the promised salary adjustment to be implemented. The closure lasted about 45 minutes and slowed traffic. 

In Chitre and La Villa de Los Santos a group of nursing assistants closed for five minutes, the two bridges over the river La Villa, which  joins Herrera and Los Santos, to demand their reclassification. Chanting slogans and playing timbales, the health professionals blocked traffic and then made ??a human chain. and walked along the bridge over the river.

"We're not asking for pay increases but compliance with our reclassification" said Luis Chavez, president of the National Association of Assistants, Nurse Practitioners and Technical Chapter of Herrera. Although Chavez admitted that patients are being affected, all they want is for the government to meet the promised wage adjustments for technicians Chavez said that technicians will conmtinue serving the emergency room, intensive care and operating rooms at Nelson Gustavo Collado Hospital in Chitre while they are seeking an understanding with the Minister of Health, Franklin Vergara.

In October last year there was a protracted withdrawal of services by doctors and administrative staff that affected hospitals across the country including Santo Tomas in Panama city.