The recent placement competition for general and family medicine specialists has seen a significant shortfall in uptake, according to a statement from the doctors’ union. Of the 582 positions available for those completing their training, only 219 of the 411 candidates selected a position.
The Independent Doctors’ Union (SIM) expressed concern that over 60% of the positions remained unfilled, describing this as a “clear reflection of a system that fails both professionals and patients.” They stressed that this issue is not new and signals an ongoing alarm that cannot continue to be ignored.
The union identified a lack of required vacancies as one of the main reasons for this “rejection,” asserting that the freedom to choose, combined with attractive conditions, is what retains doctors within the National Health Service (SNS), rather than administrative imposition.
SIM indicated that the vacant positions were also due to delays in the competitions and a lack of transparency and predictability in the process. They did, however, acknowledge that there were “substantial improvements” in this competition compared to the previous one.
Moreover, the union criticized the performance metrics of the team, noting that it continues to overemphasize medication and diagnostic prescription metrics at the expense of other clinical dimensions.
SIM proposed a revision of this weighting, arguing that it should favor indicators based on patient access, continuity of care, and response to chronic diseases.
The union also pointed out that family doctors are subjected to “excessive bureaucratic burdens,” diverting them from their primary roles, and claimed that the performance evaluation system has not been implemented “in a coherent and fair manner,” consequently hindering career progressions.
In response, the union advocated for, among other measures, the “real and transparent” opening of all necessary general and family medicine vacancies, with regular competitions and multi-year planning, along with the “urgent reorganization” of mobility within the SNS to ensure speed, predictability, and fairness in processes.
Additionally, the Order of Doctors called for opening all available positions in areas lacking family doctors, warning of “serious failures” in the placement of new general and family medicine specialists.
“It is unacceptable that there are patients without a family doctor while specialists in general and family medicine remain unplaced. This is a management problem, not a resources issue,” warned Chairman Carlos Cortes.
The most recent data available on the National Health Service (SNS) transparency portal shows an increase in the number of patients without a family doctor, rising from 1,564,203 in January to 1,633,701 in April, an increase of approximately 70,000 people.
