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 PORT-AU-PRINCE,
Haiti (sentinel.ht) – After 154 days, on Aug. 29, the
doctors and nurses of Haiti’s public hospitals announced
the official end of their strike.
The strike launched by resident physicians at
Haiti’s State University Hospital (HUEH) had paralyzed
the largest public hospital in Haiti, the General
Hospital, and all others since Mar. 28.
“We have decided to lift the strike, following
the commitments made by health authorities to satisfy
our demands,” said Dr. Roosevelt Aubourg of the
inter-hospital committee according to
Haiti Libre.
Dr. Aubourg emphasized, in particular, their
satisfaction with the adoption of the 2016-2017 budget
on Aug. 25 by the Chamber of Deputies. The new budget
adds an additional 800 million gourdes (US$12.7 million)
to the health sector. The budget must still be accepted
in the Senate.
“We learned that sanitation and rehabilitation
work is underway in hospitals, that inputs are being
delivered as we demanded,” added Dr. Aubourg. He said
there was an agreement for a gradual adjustment of fees
for residents and interns and that the government had
promised a 200% increase in salaries for residents and
resident doctors, bringing them to 25,000 gourdes ($386)
and 30,000 gourdes ($463) monthly.
Dr. Aubourg said this strike should never have
gone on for so long. He accused government officials for
the slow pace of negotiations.
During the strike, many had died on the steps of
Port-au-Prince’s General Hospital and perhaps many more
in their homes. In May, a 3-year old girl was taken to
the hospital by her parents and died, having never
received any care there. The parents are convinced that
a doctor’s intervention could have saved her.
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