Pedro Facon wants debate about working hours of doctors: “We are faced with scarcity” | Inland

The symposium ‘The Corona crisis 2020-2022. In addition to Facon, Lessons Learned’ in Brussels also received Minister of Health Frank Vandenbroucke, Managing Director of Zorgnet-Icuro Margot Cloet and infectiologist Erika Vlieghe. In an explanation where Facon also talked about better training, compensation, opportunities for flexibility and well-being at work, he noted that “a significant proportion of doctors reduce working time very much”.

“We see the search for the combination of family and work throughout society,” Facon explains to Belga. “In the context that the training of doctors is largely supported by society, we have to discuss this with those doctors. Mind you, that’s part of a future solution, I don’t want to make it a populist argument.”

“Older GPs sometimes performed 80 hours a week, which is obviously not a situation we want,” Facon nuanced. “We live in the 21st century and there are a lot of people who are already overloaded, which we obviously don’t want. However, some specializations are compensated in such a way that they can more easily afford to reduce working hours. It is a sensitive point, which we nevertheless need to talk about.”

According to Facon, it is important to talk to the doctors: “I have no ambition whatsoever to impose on the government how much someone has to work.” Based on specialization, life stage and other components, it seems useful to him to know how much a particular doctor can work, crucial information in new crisis situations.

“The minister has already submitted this to the ‘Medical Supply’ planning committee. That committee must indicate itself, how do they see working hours and how do they see it evolving? What is feasible?”