Oncology centre pay discrepancies ironed out

PUBLIC Sector Doctors are to be paid the same as private doctors at the Bank of Cyprus Oncology Centre. Representatives from the Oncology Centre yesterday met with the House of Representatives’ Health Committee to discuss the issue and other changes in its guidelines.

The Bank of Cyprus provided the seven million pounds for the creation of the Centre, which opened on September 1 this year, while the government caters for running costs.

The initial discrepancy in pay between public and private doctors working at the clinic resulted in government doctors refusing to provide their services.

After the meeting, the General Secretary of the Health Ministry, Achilleas Panjinakos, said those hired from the public sector would retain their civil service status but would receive the same salary as private sector doctors.

But the general secretary of civil service union Pasydy said yesterday that additional problems will be caused by this arrangement, and that the only way to overcome the difficulty would be for the Centre to be run exclusively by the government.

His views were echoed by the vice-president of the Pancyprian Doctors’ Association, Andreas Dimitriou, and the President of the Government Doctors Association, Stavros Stavrou.

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