Hospital staff march to Obelisk in pay dispute protest

Doctors and staff at the Garrahan Children’s Hospital staged a candlelit march at the Obelisk in central Buenos Aires on Tuesday night, demanding fair pay and better working conditions.

Representatives say they are awaiting a formal offer from the Health Ministry, despite reports that government officials had offered a pay bonus in order to settle the dispute.

President Javier Milei’s administration has faced strong criticism for its sweeping “chainsaw” cuts to public spending, not least in healthcare. In recent days, the Garrahan – Argentina’s leading and most prestigious paediatric hospital – has become a flashpoint, with staff staging walkouts over what they call “unsustainable” working conditions.

Government officials have responded by questioning staffing levels at the hospital and blaming internal “bureaucracy” for operational inefficiencies.

During Tuesday night’s protest, resident doctors called for a concrete government response. They cited low pay, overwhelming workloads – including 24-hour shifts – and critical shortages of supplies and infrastructure.

In workplace assemblies, resident doctors and nurses have continued to reject the government’s budget-based justifications and say the situation demands immediate action.

“No hospital without residents, we won’t work under precarious conditions,” chanted by protesters gathered at the Obelisk on Tuesday night.

Resident doctors are paid just 800,000 pesos a month, according to staff. The government is willing to lift pay to 1.3 million pesos via a bonus, which comes with conditions.

“Hospital resident doctors will be paid 1.3 million pesos starting from July 1," said the hospital in a communiqué that criticised "slackers" and claimed some workers did not show up to their posts.

The offer was not well received, although it will be discussed in more detail at an upcoming assembly to decide how to proceed with the industrial action.

‘Unsustainable’

Magalí Rebollo, senior clinician on one of the hospital’s inpatient wards, this week offered an account of the “unsustainable” conditions faced by professionals at one of Latin America’s leading paediatric institutions.

“A specialist paediatrician working 42 hours a week earns 1.8 million pesos. And the hourly rate for shifts – which are essential to keep the system running – is 6,000 pesos. In other public or private hospitals, it’s between 18,000 and 30,000 [pesos per hour],” Rebollo said in an interview with Radio Rivadavia.

Beyond the figures, Rebollo explained the day-to-day life at the Garrahan.

“I work on a general ward with immunosuppressed oncology patients. These are children aged one, two, three, some have been in hospital for months. Every patient is a universe. Each one is looked after by nurses, pharmacists, psychologists, oncologists, nutritionists, porters, phlebotomists. Keeping all that going every day takes more than willpower – it takes resources,” the doctor stressed.

“This isn’t about spreadsheets – it’s a living reality. Every number represents a child, a family.”

“These kids – who think you’re going to hurt them as soon as they see you – have to be reassured, supported and healed. You can’t make it up as you go. Every decision is discussed among professionals and carefully reviewed. The demands are huge, and we deserve proper pay and fair rates for shifts,” said Rebollo.

The Milei government has sought to paint a different picture of the hospital. Among others, Deputy Health Minister Cecilia Loccisano complained on social media that the institute has too many administrative staff and not enough doctors.

Rebollo was unequivocal in her response. “It’s false. Sixty-eight percent of Garrahan staff have direct contact with patients. This isn’t about spreadsheets – it’s a living reality. Every number represents a child, a family,” she said.

‘Manipulated’

Former national health minister Adolfo Rubinstein also weighed in on the dispute.

“They’ve manipulated the figures. They say there are more administrators than doctors, but in reality there are around 1,500 nurses, 1,500 residents and 500 doctors. Plus biochemists, support staff and technicians who play vital roles at the hospital,” said Rubinstein, a former doctor at the Hospital Italiano in Buenos Aires.

Responding to claims from President Milei that “Kirchnerite scams” were being targeted at the hospital and “ghost employees” eliminated, Rubinstein sought to draw attention to a wider “structural crisis in Argentina’s public health system.”

The former minister also stressed the strategic importance of Garrahan as a teaching hospital and national referral centre: “It’s a hospital that treats children from across the country, even from families with private health coverage that doesn’t include certain treatments,” he said.

“People still don’t grasp how vital it is,” he concluded.

– TIMES/NA/PERFIL