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Contact: Alex Catsoulis, Alex@JusticeSpeaks.us

NYC Doctors Rally at Queens Hospital Center to Protest Dangerous Cuts to Patient Care Time

Physicians Urge Reversal of NYC Health + Hospitals’ Policy Reducing New Patient Visit Times

VIEW PHOTOS HERE Courtesy of Doctors Council

Queens, New York – Today, dozens of attending physicians represented by Doctors Council SEIU rallied at Queens Hospital Center to protest NYC Health + Hospitals' (H+H) recent decision to slash new patient visit times from 40 minutes to just 20 minutes. The action comes in response to the system-wide implementation of the policy on September 16, which now affects all H+H ambulatory care facilities across New York City, including Gotham Health.

During the demonstration, doctors spoke out against the abrupt policy change, emphasizing the risks it poses to both patient safety and staff morale. Physicians expressed concerns that the shortened visit times will hinder their ability to provide adequate care, particularly in a public healthcare system already strained by staffing shortages.

“Recent decisions by Health + Hospitals to halve patient appointment times, without consulting frontline doctors, jeopardize patient care. Our patients often require more time and support to navigate their health. Reduced appointment times contradict our mission to provide quality care and could lead to increased hospitalizations and ER visits for manageable conditions,” said Dr. Merjona Saliaj, Internist at NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens and member of Doctors Council SEIU.

“This will exponentially lead to burnout and drive doctors out,” added Dr. Jasmine Sandu, Internist at NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens and member of Doctors Council SEIU.

In addition to their demands for the immediate reversal of the policy, healthcare workers called on Mayor Eric Adams to intervene and ensure NYC H+H invests in safe staffing and retention to address the broader issues facing the city's public healthcare system.

“We’ve been told this change is due to a large backlog of new patients waiting for primary care appointments. However, we believe there are better ways to deal with this issue, like improving the recruitment and retention of doctors at such facilities. This is also a central theme of our ongoing contract negotiations with H+H and its various affiliates, who we work for,” said Dr. Sameer Misra, Internist at NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens and member of Doctors Council SEIU. "We believe in H+H’s mission to provide comprehensive, high quality health services to all New Yorkers, regardless of their ability to pay. But this mission cannot be achieved without investing in the very doctors who deliver these services day in and day out."

Doctors Council SEIU members, who have been without a contract for over a year and are currently engaged in ongoing contract negotiations with NYC H+H, stressed that quality patient care and staff well-being should be prioritized. They emphasized the critical need for investment in both areas to ensure a strong healthcare system for all New Yorkers, regardless of socioeconomic status, immigration status, or zip code.

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