Reynosa and Río Bravo Medical Workers Protest Shortages and Poor Working Conditions

Medical workers from hospitals and health centres in Reynosa and Río Bravo gathered outside Reynosa’s General Hospital, carrying signs and blocking traffic on Avenida Álvaro Obregón. The protest was peaceful, but the road closure angered drivers on the busy avenue.

The workers said they belonged to the General Hospital, the Maternal and Child Hospital and health centres operated by IMSS-Bienestar. They demanded dignified working conditions and said the shortages were making it harder to care for patients.

Eduardo León, a doctor at the General and Maternal and Child hospitals, said the facilities lacked medicines and supplies. He also said they did not have enough staff, forcing doctors, nurses, paramedics and orderlies to work overtime.

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We are demanding that our detoxification period be fulfilled. We enter many surgeries and need to undergo laboratory tests to know how we are doing. The instruction arrived in October last year, but it has not been carried out, putting our health at risk.

The protesters said they were also waiting for health checks required after repeated exposure to surgical procedures. León said an instruction to carry out the tests had arrived in October of the previous year, but had not been implemented. They argued that the delay put their health at risk.

They further said uniforms that should have arrived in December had still not been delivered. “We are demanding decent working conditions. We are permanent IMSS-Bienestar staff, and our requirements are essential,” read the signs carried during the demonstration.

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We are demanding decent working conditions. We are permanent IMSS-Bienestar staff, and our requirements are essential.