Representatives of the Ministry of Public Health, the Instituto Dominicano de Seguro Social (IDSS), the Cuerpo Médico y Sanidad Militar, the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (UASD), and the Asociación Médica Dominicana (AMD) have agreed to extend doctors’ residencies by six months because of the time they lost during the six-month AMD strike in public hospitals, and those of the IDSS from October of 1995 to April of this year.
The agreement was reached after differences between the groups were resolved; Public Health, the Armed Forces and the IDSS wanted the doctors to repeat the entire year of classroom study and residency, UASD called for a six-month extension, and the AMD favored only three months.
According to the 27 June edition of the Hoy newspaper, many of the resident doctors are planning to protest against the measure and pressure for an extension of only three-months.
The Minister of Public Health, Dr. Victor Garcia Santos, warned that any protest will be ignored, saying that it is impossible to have doctors who have “graduated” as specialists with only a minimum amount of study and work as residents.