Academics criticize doctors for downplaying hospital productivity issues

Academics Héctor Sánchez and Manuel Inostroza from the UNAB Public Health Institute have criticized what they describe as a traditional "union attitude" among some doctors who they say "ignore and relativize the problem of reduced productivity in public hospitals." Their comments appear to target a column written by Francisca Crispi, president of the Regional Santiago chapter of the Medical College.

Sánchez and Inostroza emphasized the importance of monitoring healthcare output relative to investment. "We care equally about what is produced from the investment in the health system and how it is spent to obtain it," they stated. Drawing on international experience, they noted that "regardless of the higher spending levels of more developed countries, resources will always be scarce, and consequently, greater efficiency and productivity will always be required to ensure the sustainability of health systems."

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We care equally about what is produced from the investment in the health system and how it is spent to obtain it; on the other hand, from what we have learned from international experience, regardless of the higher spending levels of more developed countries, the resources will always be scarce and consequently always greater efficiency and productivity will be required to ensure the sustainability of the health systems.

The academics pointed to their latest report, which documented a 25.3% increase in public sector healthcare production between 2019 and 2025, rising from 154.6 million to 193.7 million services provided. However, they highlighted that during the same period, the number of professional human resources increased by 96%. Concurrently, hospitalization days decreased by 2.7%, and specialized consultations dropped by 3.3%.

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effectively in our latest report we recorded the increase in healthcare production in the public sector by 25.3% between 2019 and 2025, going from 154.6 million to 193.7 million services, but it is omitted that in the same period the professional human resources increased by 96% and that hospitalization days fell 2.7%, consultations of specialties decreased 3.3%.