By: Dr Vinko Gorenak
The lengthy doctor’s strike is certainly a unique achievement of Golob’s Coalition. How things will unfold is not entirely clear. Left-leaning media, which are in the majority here, are criticising the doctors, claiming that they are only after higher wages. Consequently, the public does not support the doctor’s strike. Left-leaning media are the ones constantly fuelling this situation, suggesting that doctors slack off in public institutions in the mornings to rest, and then work for private practitioners in the afternoons, who are portrayed as scoundrels and exploiters. But let’s look at things from a different perspective, one that left-leaning media do not report on.
It would be somewhat expected that negotiations with doctors on behalf of the government would be led by Minister of Health Valentina Prevolnik Rupel. However, this is not the case; negotiations with doctors are led by her State Secretary, Denis Kordež. Furthermore, the minister simply goes on vacation during the time when the decree, which mandates what doctors must do despite the strike, is being passed. From an outsider’s perspective, it is evident that this decree is contrary to the constitution. The head of coalition asserted just over a year ago that they would not rule through decrees because in that case, they would be the same as the third government of Janez Janša. And this is exactly what happened.
But here is the important point: the current government signed an agreement with doctors on June 1st, 2023, committing to raise doctors’ salaries as of January 1st, 2024. This, of course, did not happen, and the doctors are dissatisfied as a result.
Another aspect must be highlighted. All employees work 40 hours per week, while doctors work 48 hours per week, of course due to the shortage of doctors. Doctors are aware of this and therefore work more than other employees. No one forbids anyone from working something else or somewhere else in their free time. And if doctors, after completing their 48 hours per week in public institutions, work for private practitioners, we cannot blame them for that. Just look at what the left-leaning media are doing. They invite Jaša Jenull to their shows, who claims to represent the voice of the people. This individual lectures doctors on what and how they should work, but in his free time, he exercises around Ljubljana in his underwear and calls it his job.
THE LAW ON ASSISTANCE IN VOLUNTARY ENDING OF LIFE, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE EUTHANASIA LAW, IS ALSO AN ACHIEVEMENT OF GOLOB’S COALITION, ALTHOUGH IT WAS WRITTEN BY THE SILVER THREAD SOCIETY.
The law on assistance in voluntary ending of life, otherwise known as the Euthanasia Law, is also an achievement of Golob’s Coalition, although it was written by the Silver Thread Society and submitted to the National Assembly with 5000 signatures. Golob’s Coalition somehow adopted it, and it came up for discussion.
To be honest, we discussed this idea in the National Assembly as early as 2014. At that time, as a member of parliament, I was relatively supportive of this idea. However, in 2015, a relative in my immediate family fell terminally ill. Healthcare alleviated his pain to the extent that he was only awake for about two or three hours a day, sleeping the rest of the time. So, he was not suffering from severe pain. At that moment, I wondered, what if he wished for euthanasia? No, I said to myself, we must never do that.
Doctors strongly oppose euthanasia, at least the vast majority do. It seems to me that Dr Samo Zver expressed their majority viewpoint when he said, “Who am I to end someone else’s life? Who? I will not do things that I find reprehensible. If my medical fate depends on whether I do this or not, I will not. I know how to do other things. I can go dig trenches.” Dr Erik Brecelj from the Institute of Oncology in Ljubljana expressed a similar stance. He said, “Euthanasia is against the code, and regardless of any law passed, I will not violate the code.” During the first discussion of the aforementioned law in the National Assembly, Golob’s Coalition apparently got scared and decided that the law was not suitable for further discussion. However, they advocated for people to express their opinions on it through a referendum. So, the majority stance of doctors on euthanasia, or in plain terms, on the murder of terminally ill individuals, is clear. If this law is passed, the practical question will arise of who will administer the lethal injection to the patient and thus end their life. Most injections are given to people by nurses. Will it be the same in this case? It seems to me that in the event of the law being passed, a conflict between doctors and nurses is inevitable.
But left-leaning media are already at work, conducting surveys that suggest that the majority supports such a law.
To be continued.