GMOA to strike across the country except in disaster-hit areas

The Government Medical Officers' Association (GMOA) today decided to go on strike next Tuesday (31) in all government hospitals in the country except in disaster-hit districts, against the ‘arbitrary action’ of the Medical Services Director (MSD) of the Health Ministry.

Accordingly, floods and landslides hit districts including Colombo, Gampaha, Kegalle, Puttalam and Kilinochchi will not be affected by the island-wide strike of the government doctors.

GMOA was planning to launch an island-wide trade union action against the Medical Services Director (MSD) for changing the list of vacancies without their consent, after it had been prepared by the Health Ministry and GMOA for assigning post-internships to doctors.

“A number of GMOA branches island-wide had objected to the Medical Services Director’s arbitrary actions, warning of strike action. The original list had been replaced with a new list prepared by the MSD and a Public Relations Officer of the Health Ministry. According to the new list some of the peripheral hospitals would not get doctors at all,” the GMOA Spokesman Dr. De Soysa said.

“We prepared the list according to the information received from hospital directors and regional health service directors at a meeting of the heads of health institutions. Now, it has been changed without our consent,” he said.

He also said that considering the disaster situation which the country is currently facing, the strike will not be carried out in those districts.

However, doctors in Batticaloa and Ampara have vowed to launch the trade union action this Friday (27), the GMOA said. (Piyumi Fonseka)