The chairman of the Israel Medical Association, Prof. Zion Hagai, received the results of a survey taken among all of Israel’s doctors regarding the judicial reform in which they were asked questions regarding the possibility of shutting down the medial system should the rulings of the Supreme Court not be respected.
The results of the survey indicated that 89.95% of doctors agreed with the following statement:
“This is a professional and scientific organization of doctors that has goals and values and is committed to protecting the rights of patience and doctors, the health system, the quality of medicine and public health, professional autonomy, training doctors as well as the basic values of medical ethics, social justice, compassion and equality.
“A functional and ethical health system must rely on a democratic government and a strong and independent judicial system that guarantees that the rights of the patients, doctors and the health system will not be harmed.”
Calling a labor dispute
A special referendum was held in accordance with a decision made by delegates at the Israel Medical Association’s 44th conference.
The heads of the medical unions spoke to Hagai and said they urged the association “to determine that if the rulings of the Supreme Court won’t be respected, which will lead to a constitutional crisis, then the doctors will declare a labor dispute with the possibility of shutting down all non-emergency medical services, with the understanding that it isn’t possible to pass their agenda in light of the expected harm to their patients.”
Some of the doctors who opposed the referendum signed their own petition calling for medicine not to be involved in politics. “We are a group of several hundred doctors, who oppose mixing politics and medicine, and don’t agree for the Medical Association to strike on our behalf on political issues,” a spokesperson for a group opposed to the outcome of the poll told the Post.
