Hundreds of private anaesthetists, surgeons, and obstetricians from France travelled to Brussels for a three-day protest against the French government’s healthcare policies.
According to Philippe Cuq, president of the union Le Bloc, the aim is to urge the government to stop undermining private medical practice.
Addressing reporters before twenty buses departed Paris for the Belgian capital on Sunday, he announced that the medics would work in Brussels to draft ten proposals for improving healthcare policy to present to the French Prime Minister upon their return.
Around 1,500 doctors participated in the symbolic protest, Cuq explained, though nearly 2,000 had registered originally. Several hundred were ultimately unable to join after being requisitioned by the authorities.
Cuq also stated that the protesting doctors are seeking a meeting with Sébastien Lecornu. “The Prime Minister focuses on farmers who feed the French people, but we doctors are the ones who care for them,” he said.
Their proposals are expected to address key issues, including the funding of additional fees, which the medical professionals argue are essential for the financial sustainability of their practices.
Lamine Gharbi, president of the private clinics federation (FHP), which supports the protest, warned that 80% of private operating theatres would close during the first three days of the coming week.
This, he said, would put strain on public hospitals, which will need to accommodate patients who would otherwise rely on private clinics.
The protest is part of a wider strike action by private physicians, with nearly all organisations in the sector calling for a strike between 5 and 15 January.
Other grievances include limits on issuing sick leave and measures that bypass traditional negotiations between the medical profession and the national health insurance organisation.
On Saturday, tens of thousands of medical professionals reportedly marched in Paris. Organisers estimated 20,000 attendees, while police figures put the number closer to 5,000.
