2023-05-25 22:39:00
He bronchiolitis flare that broke out a few weeks ago in Argentina continues to cause long delays in public and private pediatric hospitals in the country, while raising concern among health specialists about its effects on the younger population.
bronchiolitis, a acute respiratory infection that occurs more frequently in the autumn-winter months, mainly affects children under one year of age and it can be caused by different viruses; the most common is the Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), which also causes respiratory infections that can be serious in older adults, such as pneumonia.
This week, the National Ministry of Health warned that the peak of cases of the disease, which usually occurs in mid-June, has come early and is generating high occupancy in emergency units and hospitalization rooms.
The notice
Given this scenario, the Argentine Pediatric Society (SAP) issued a message on Thursday detailing the poor conditions in which professionals dedicated to child health work.
“Given the delicate epidemiological situation due to the increase in respiratory infections that is affecting children and adolescents, the Argentine Pediatric Society wishes to express its appreciation to the pediatricians who, once again, are carrying out their task with dedication throughout the country, despite the difficult working conditions and the postponement of legitimate claims,” the text states.
The letter in which Argentine pediatricians describe the current health situation as “a difficult scenario for the professional practice of pediatrics” He lists some of the aspects that aggravate the panorama: “Unacceptable working conditions, high workload, job instability, lack of stimulus for growth, situations of violence, low pay, the need to moonlight to make ends meet and lack of opportunities to update in the profession.”
The SAP doctors expressed that being part of the health system, particularly in the care sector, “is quite exhausting both in the field of public health and in private medicine.”
In this sense, they indicated that this occurs due to multiple factors, ranging from the increase in consultations to “the decrease in human resources in the health teamcaused by the lack of new appointments, vacancies that are not covered, temporary contracts, lack of equipment and infrastructure, lack of time to adequately examine patients”.
The letter also remarked that “the State and all of society, including all the institutions that are part of it, should be concerned about medical professional development, both for their training and for the working conditions to which those who work to care for the everyone’s health.”
“Protecting the health of children and adolescents by facilitating their access to pediatric care in conditions of equity and quality requires public policies that prioritize professional training and the conditions in which the profession is practiced. We urge the competent authorities to convene a dialogue table, in order to find an answer that considers an adequate solution to this situation of work overload for pediatricians and obstacles to timely care for patients,” the statement concluded.
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