The leadership of the Alliance of Doctors Independent Trade Union of health workers came to Yelets to support the workers of the Yelets branch of the Lipetsk blood transfusion station, which is planned to be shut down in order to save money. Governor Igor Artamonov wrote "Well done" on his Instagram. On January 13, spokesperson of the union Ivan Konovalov reported this to 7x7.
The Health Department of Lipetsk Oblast is planning to close the institution to save 12 million rubles, and suggests qualified doctors working as doctors with a salary of 12 thousand rubles in Lipetsk (75 kilometers from Yelets), carpenters, tractor drivers, or shiftsmen.
As spokesperson of the trade union Ivan Konovalov said, this hospital is in good condition and it is not clear why it should be closed:
— The hospital is quite big, it has a staff of 33 people, a huge number of donors. We were there at 11AM today — there was a continuous stream of donors, there were 10 people whose blood was taken in the operating room, and there were four people in the queue. The hospital is in very good condition, I can tell you as a person who has been in many hospitals across Russia.
Konovalov told 7x7 that representatives of the trade union were going to a meeting with representatives of the Health Department, where they would try to find out the reason for the shutdown of the hospital, and after that, the Alliance of Doctors would think about how to support the station's employees.
During the visit to the hospital, the press service of the trade union posted a photo on Instagram with caption "we will not allow you to shotdown the blood transfusion station" where it tagged the official account of Governor of Lipetsk Oblast Igor Artamonov. He (or the person who runs his account) responded to this message with the phrase "Well done!" Konovalov does not know whether this was a sincere support or just a mockery.
The Alliance of Doctors Independent Trade Union was formed in 2018, ophthalmologist Anastasia Vasilyeva became its chairman. They protect the rights of health workers in various ways including the organization of work-to-rules. You can learn more about new trade unions in Russia in our article.
