SOFIA (Reuters), Jan 21 - Bulgarian doctors began a week of one-hour daily strikes on Monday to protest against insufficient funding for the Balkan country's ailing healthcare sector and demand reforms, officials said.
The European Union newcomer has pledged to reform its inefficient and corrupt health sector, but has done little to tackle the problems in the 18 years since the fall of communism.
"The lack of funding puts the doctors in a humiliating position. There is no clear policy for the systematically under-funded sector," said Andrey Kehayov, head of Bulgaria's Medical Association that is leading the protests.
Many of the country's 34,000 doctors will stop work for one hour every day this week, Kehayov said.
Thousands of Bulgarian medics have left the country in the past decade, seeking better pay abroad. Medical unions say the numbers increased after Bulgaria joined the EU last year, creating staff shortages.
Last month, nurses, midwives and laboratory assistants rallied across the country to press for higher pay and urge the government to stop medical workers leaving.
Kehayov said the doctors' union will hold talks with nurses' organizations and local authorities to seek more funding.
Bulgaria has been hit by a wave of protests in the past several months, increasing pressure on the Socialist-led government to boost living standards in the poorest EU nation, where monthly salaries average about 450 levs ($333).
Earlier this year, teachers staged a six-week strike which paralyzed schools and kindergartens. Miners, social workers and pensioners have also demanded more money.
Last Updated: 2008-01-21 11:06:06 -0400 (Reuters Health)
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