The Doctors Syndicate has launched a week-long online campaign to push for the implementation of the court decision that would raise doctors’ compensation up to EGP 1,000 in case of contracting infections on the job.
In November 2015, the Administrative Court of the State Council decided to raise the infections compensation to EGP 1,000 instead of only EGP 19, following the death of many doctors who contracted serious infections at work.
The cabinet issued an appeal against the verdict, claiming that the allocated budget is insufficient for the compensation increased. However, the court rejected the appeal in early June.
Nevertheless, as of yet, the cabinet has still not increased doctors’ compensation.
Using the hashtag “Implement the Infections Compensation Increase”, doctors exposed their risk of contracting infections during work and expressed how crucial the infection compensation is to ensure their right to medical treatment.
Doctors are at risk of contracting infections on a daily basis due to their direct exposure to patients and the poor conditions in Egypt’s hospitals. According to the Doctors Syndicate secretary general Mona Mina, doctors are most at risk from hepatitis C, respiratory, and bacterial diseases.
Over the past three years, at least six doctors have died due to contracting an infection in their line of work. This increase in compensation is not expected to prevent the occurrence of infections but rather to give doctors access to adequate healthcare.
According to member of the board at the Doctors Syndicate Hany Mehany, doctors, especially surgeons, receive the lowest rate of compensation compared to employees in other sectors who get compensated for working in less dangerous conditions.
The campaign also highlighted specific cases of doctors who died due to infections. The list included six doctors who died over the past three years. Among them was Ahmed Abdel Latif who died in December 2013 due to a deadly infection from a ventilator machine in the intensive care unit. The latest case occurred in November 2015, as Dalia Mehrez died of meningitis in Ismailia while working in a medical caravan.
Mehrez’s death sparked widespread outrage from doctors and was followed by the court verdict to raise their compensation.
Since the court verdict, the syndicate had sent several letters and requests on different dates to the cabinet and presidency in order seeking an increase in compensation, but there has been no response so far.
The Health Ministry was not available for comment on the matter at the time of publishing.
Article 100 of the Constitution states that refraining from implementing court decisions is punishable—the penalties for which are jail time and expulsion from one’s position.
