A top Romanian surgeon draws an alarm signal on the heavy situation of medical staff. He works at the Botosani County Hospital and confesses that the lack of staff is the most acute problem. There are thousands of operations a year, half of the number.
Mavromati County Hospital is the largest in Moldova photo Cosmin Zamfirache
The doctor Iulian Preda, the head of the Surgery Section of the “Mavromati” County Hospital in Botosani is one of the top surgeons, with over 27 years. It works in the largest hospital unit with beds in Moldova and has to deal with a large and varied case. The Botoşănean doctor drew an alarm signal and spoke openly about the problems they face in professional life and which are certainly found throughout the Romanian medical system. It is about exhaustion, continuous fire work and serious shortcomings especially at staff level.
“I officially announce that the Labor Code is violated.”
First of all, doctor Iulian Preda draws attention to the chronic personnel crisis on the surgery section, one of the busiest. On each category of employees there is a deficit, from the doctors to the care staff. “I would still need a surgeon, seven more nurse, three nurses, three stretches and six caretakers. This is to work morally, ethically and legal ”says doctor Iulian Preda.
In addition, much of the medical staff is aged, exhausted and without psychological assistance, in heavy cases. “I have been here for 27 years and a psychologist has never come to ask us if we suffer, if we cry, if our landscape hurts, if we have insomnia. If we are to talk about neuroscience, after a cursed guard you should provide us with three weeks of recovery. That is, without guards or minimum size. We are also new signatories of the Council of Europe I would like to officially announce that the Labor Code is violated. My section now has 11 doctors. We are 10 seniors, two of whom have medical problems ”adds the Botosan surgeon.
“Would you like to operate a zombie?”
With the staff available, that is, only 11 doctors, six nurses and a small number of nurses, the surgery section of “Mavromati” cope with an entire advantage of patients. There are thousands of patients operated on annually. In addition, patients need post-operative care. The interventions are increasingly difficult because those who need surgery are increasingly older and with more and more associated diseases.
Doctor Iulian Preda Photo Btonline
“In 2023 we had 3476 extensions and 2293 operations. In 2024 we had another 3473 outsourments, with 2293 operations. And in recent years there have been extremely serious cases, in the sense that it required prolonged hospitalization, with multiple interventions. Surgery does not only imply the technical part but also the care. It is a chronophage job, time eating. And the patients are increasingly old, they are late and newer with a lot of associated diseases: compromised cords, diabetes, a lot of unfortunate situations ”says Iulian Preda.
To cope with the wave of patients, the staff reaches exhaustion. Due to the lack of staff the doctors and assistants gather thousands of hours of unaided leave but also extremely fatigue.
“My section is extremely tormented. There is a kind of disciplinary battalion. I want to stop pulling my people anymore, to stretch them more than can. Do you want to talk in terms of war? That we still have it in the coast. If you don’t believe me, read Sven Hassel. The man stands for three days-days, one week in the fighting line. The colleague dies, he has nothing to eat, his cartridges are over. The leadership of the division comes and says: “Ready you go to restoration.” Mine, on the other hand, have no time to breathe. On December 31, I announced the leadership that the nurses had 2000 days of unsaid leave. We talk about it. ”adds the Botosanian doctor. It also reaches extreme situations in which the doctor who comes out of guard continues to work the next day.
With high risks, first of all for one’s own health. “If I am on guard today, I enter 8:00 and I teach the guard tomorrow at 8.00. And from 8.00 to 14.00 you continue to work as if I came home. If I do not sleep absolutely one night, in one case, would you like to operate a zombie? ”asks Iulian Preda.
No competitions were organized
Although apparently the problem of medical staff is related to the area where Botosaniul is, that is, at the end of Romania, it would be an administrative problem. On the contrary, the County Hospital begins to become one of the most modern hospitals in the region. Millions of euros are invested in equipment and rehabilitation of building bodies. However, doctors do not cram to come to Botosani. Paradoxically, the current manager of the hospital states, this is due because no positions were removed. “In order to come to the competition, they must be organized. Actually no employment competitions were organized, although requests from the sections were made ”says Corneliu Prepeliță, director of the “Mavromati” County Hospital.
