Lorraine Williamson
Spain’s public healthcare system is heading for another period of disruption, after medical unions announced rolling strike action from mid-February. Doctors say the government’s proposed overhaul of employment rules for healthcare staff still fails to recognise the realities of the profession, from training and responsibility to workload and on-call time.
The plan, agreed by a strike committee bringing together several doctors’ organisations, is designed to keep pressure on the Ministry of Health while leaving space for talks. It is also a sign of how entrenched the dispute over Spain’s “Estatuto Marco” reform has become, after months of protests and earlier stoppages.
Strike dates: the weeks that could be affected
The unions have called one strike week per month, starting on 16 February, and scheduled through June as a first phase of mobilisation.
The dates published by the strike committee are: 16–20 February; 16–20 March; 27–30 April; 18–22 May; and 15–19 June.
Who is calling the strike?
The announcement has been issued through a strike committee that includes the Confederación Española de Sindicatos Médicos (CESM) and Sindicato Médico Andaluz (SMA), alongside regional organisations such as Metges de Catalunya, AMYTS (Madrid), SME (Basque Country) and O’MEGA (Galicia).
Their message is consistent: doctors want a dedicated “medical and facultative” professional statute, rather than being folded into a broad framework that covers the whole statutory health workforce.
Why doctors say the current proposal is a breaking point
At the centre of the dispute is the government’s proposed “Nuevo Estatuto Marco”, a draft reform that aims to modernise working conditions for Spain’s statutory health staff. The Ministry of Health presents it as a package intended to improve employment stability, work-life balance, and safeguards around excessive hours and rest periods.
Medical unions argue the reform still treats doctors like standard employees, without reflecting the profession’s specific demands. They point to years of training, high clinical responsibility, long shifts, nights, and extensive unpaid or poorly compensated overtime.
There is also a wider political tension around who gets to negotiate what, and at what table. The Ministry has previously said it regrets doctors’ organisations stepping away from negotiations, while unions insist the proposed framework does not meet the moment for a system under sustained strain.
What patients should expect in hospitals and health centres
Emergency and essential services are expected to remain available, but the practical impact is likely to be felt elsewhere. Routine GP appointments, non-urgent consultations, some diagnostic tests and scheduled procedures may be postponed, depending on staffing levels and the minimum services set by each autonomous community.
Spain’s health system is decentralised, so the day-to-day reality can vary sharply by region and even by hospital. If you have an appointment during one of the strike weeks, check your hospital or local health centre channels and your region’s health service updates, and do not assume a routine appointment will go ahead as normal unless you are explicitly told. For urgent symptoms, emergency care remains the right route.
Madrid demonstration on 14 February
Two days before the first strike week, unions are also calling doctors from across Spain to travel to Madrid for a national demonstration on 14 February. Organisers say it is intended to make the dispute visible to politicians and the public, and to signal that the rolling strikes are only one part of a broader mobilisation.
A dispute that could widen beyond doctors
The doctors’ strike sits within a broader labour argument about the Estatuto Marco reform, with other health unions also mobilising separately over the same legislative overhaul. For patients, the key point is that the coming months may bring multiple, overlapping periods of disruption across different parts of the health service, even if the triggers and demands differ by group.
Where this leaves the government and the unions
The unions insist they remain open to dialogue, but their strategy suggests they believe time is no longer on the government’s side. If talks fail, the monthly strike weeks could become a stepping stone to longer or more frequent stoppages.
For the Ministry, the challenge is political as well as practical: reforming an ageing framework for a modern health service is difficult in any country. Doing it while staff shortages, waiting lists and burnout remain everyday realities makes the stakes far higher.
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