The Regional Government of Murcia has set minimum service levels for the doctors’ strike minimum service levels in the public health service, announced for Monday. A&E departments and urgent treatments are to be maintained with the full complement of medical staff normally on duty. The requirements apply to facilities run by the regional health service Servicio Murciano de Salud.
The strike called by the union Sindicato Médicos Unidos is due to begin at 8 am on 16 November 2026. According to the order published in the official gazette, the first phase will last until 8 am on 28 November. The strike is open-ended; any further strike days would have to be announced within the required notice period.
According to the news agency Europa Press, services to be fully maintained include dialysis and radiotherapy. Urgent operations and other treatments that cannot be postponed are also to be guaranteed. For primary and paediatric care, the order sets different minimum staffing levels for individual facilities and shifts.
As a general benchmark for hospitals, the regional government specifies staffing levels equivalent to those on a public holiday. It sets additional requirements for particularly sensitive areas. However, this does not guarantee that all planned examinations and treatments will take place during the strike. The order itself states that normal activity is not to be maintained across the board.
The government justifies the minimum service levels on the grounds of protecting health and life. It also points to the length of the first strike phase: if ordinary care is interrupted for several days, outstanding treatment needs could build up. At the same time, employees’ right to strike must be taken into account.
Sindicato Médicos Unidos is calling for a separate nationwide framework for doctors’ professional conditions, as well as additional funding to improve working conditions. The union says it has announced the strike at both national and regional level.
This should be distinguished from the position of the doctors’ union CESM in Murcia. It said it would not call a strike, citing a recent agreement with the regional health authority. At national level, it will continue to call for a separate framework for doctors and healthcare professionals.
The restrictions patients actually experience will also depend on strike participation and local organisation. The minimum service levels set out the required safeguards, not the eventual scale of possible disruption.
Editor: Clara Simonichek (Article created with AI assistance).