Some Anesthesiologists Refuse to Perform Surgery in Iran

Continuing protests by anesthesiologists in response to reduced tariffs. The head of the Iranian Anesthesiology Association has described the 25% reduction in anesthesia tariffs as 'unprofessional' and attributed it to a decrease in income of over 25% for specialists in this field. Meanwhile, a number of specialists in various cities across Iran have stopped working. According to a report on Wednesday (September 13), Alireza Salimi described the working conditions of over four thousand anesthesiologists across the country as 'difficult.' This member of the Anesthesiology Association also confirmed reports of some anesthesiologists refusing to perform non-essential surgeries in cities such as Shiraz, Shahrud, and Kerman. He warned that 'when conditions are not good, the quality of treatment also declines.' Reza Aminnejad, another member of the Anesthesiology Association, criticized the 25% reduction in anesthesia tariffs, stating that in Iran, anesthesiologists' earnings during surgeries are effectively one-twentieth of that of surgeons. Aminnejad expressed dissatisfaction with what he termed 'unconventional earnings of surgical colleagues' in Iran and added that 'the anesthesiology community demands a halt to the decision to reduce anesthesia tariffs until expert reviews are conducted.' He remarked that 'around the world, anesthesiologists receive salaries equal to or even greater than surgeons due to the high stress and critical nature of their work.' He noted that 'for over six months, anesthesiologists have been negotiating with 25 members of parliament, the ministers of welfare and health, and the vice president. All these individuals have confirmed the unprofessional nature of these tariffs and promised cooperation, but no one has taken action.' According to him, the postponed surgeries in some cities are those whose delays 'do not endanger the patient's life.' Aminnejad added that the 25% reduction in anesthesia tariffs 'saves less than one percent of costs, according to the ministry itself.' He stated, 'In all countries, elite individuals enter the field of anesthesiology, but in our country, the willingness of general practitioners to enter it has decreased... if this trend continues, in ten years, we will not have qualified individuals in anesthesiology.' According to ISNA, Iraj Harirchi, the deputy health minister, expressed hope that reports of anesthesiologists stopping work in several private and public hospitals in Shiraz were 'not true.' The Health Ministry's Treatment Deputy also issued a statement requesting university heads of medical sciences: 'If a few employed anesthesiologists do not cooperate in providing anesthesia services in elective and non-emergency surgeries, full-time physicians should be sought to continue providing medical services to compatriots.' Following the approval of the 2017 tariffs by the first cabinet of Hassan Rouhani and the reduction of tariffs in some fields, including anesthesiology, a wave of protests from specialists in this field against the Health Ministry was initiated. Although there were previous reports of 'decisions' made in the Health Ministry to prevent the continuation of protests by anesthesiologists, it seems these decisions have not led to any results. The secretary of the Iranian Society of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care had previously stated that if the Administrative Justice Court and the Health Ministry do not convince anesthesiologists, they may refuse to anesthetize some patients. Anesthesiologists have launched a campaign called 'No to Discriminatory Reduction of Anesthesia Tariffs,' announcing that they will continue their protests. They claim that while the government and the Health Ministry have reduced anesthesia tariffs due to what they call 'financial resource shortages in the health transformation plan,' at the same time, tariffs for other medical fields have increased.