By Nick Theodoulou
Doctors at Paphos A&E department have warned that as of Monday there will not be enough of them to cover night shifts after reports of bullying and other internal conflicts.
According to media reports, staff conflicts have almost crippled the department, leaving the State Health Services Organisation (Okypy) struggling to deal with the fallout.
The director of the Paphos A&E department warned Okypy and the ministry of health that from Monday there will be night shifts where only one doctor is working.
She stressed that it was “illegal” for doctors to work shifts alone and said that the doctors want to work within the law.
Meanwhile, four A&E doctors sent a complaint to Okypy concerning the behaviour of one of their colleagues. A fifth doctor aired his issues online. Reports also say that some doctors are taking massive amounts of sick leave.
One doctor reportedly took a total of 144 days sick leave between March and July 2019. Meanwhile, another was absent on sick leave for 58 days between February to August 2019. A third doctor from the A&E department reportedly took 53 days sick leave from January to August 2019. Only two doctors from the department have not taken sick leave in 2019.
These two doctors along with another two colleagues complained to Okypy on October 17, denouncing the behaviour of other doctors in the A&E department in writing.
The four said there was one colleague in particular with whom they refuse to work as she is “unreliable, dishonest and is not cooperating with us”. They went on to say that “she causes major issues and ruins the programme if something doesn’t suit her”.
The doctors concluded by saying “the public are receiving misinformation about the staffing and operational issues of the A&E department. The impunity and the two-tier treatment of some doctors must end”.
According to reports, the Limassol-Paphos management has been informed of the complaint and the ministry of health ordered them to investigate the issue.
It is not the first time the “dishonest” doctor has had complaints filed against her. A woman from the Paphos A&E department, who resigned, had also complained about her behaviour.
Another doctor who served in that department took to social media to explain how he was forced to request a transfer due to the behaviour of other doctors.
He said that two Greek doctors had been bullied. “It’s not only two doctors, it’s many more. Because of the bullying I was forced to request a transfer. Another doctor also requested a transfer while others resigned and left for Greece,” he added.
