- A patient asked a medical intern in Mexico, who was about to finish his consultation, how much he earned.
- When the doctor replied that they did not pay him for the internship, the patient gave him 10 pesos “to buy a coke.”
- This confirms what many of us know, interns are exploited without mercy.
A patient asked a medical intern in Mexico, which was about to end the consultation, how much did he earn? When the doctor replied that they did not pay him for the internship, the patient gave him 10 people “Why would you buy a coke?”
The resident doctor is a worker-student. The undergraduate medical intern is just a student and is the responsibility of his or her institution of higher education. But, What is the social service intern? The law does not recognize him as a worker, but he has responsibilities greater than those of a student.
In 1936, social service in medicine began in our country with the aim of closing a gap that seems to have no end. Nearly a hundred years ago we began sending physicians-in-training to the most needy and underserved places in the nation. But to this day inequality persists; the rich are seen by specialist doctors and the poorest by social service interns.
The typical salary for an Intern Physician at IMSS is $3,290 per month. Medical Intern salaries at IMSS can range from $2,800 to $4,901 per month.
According to the expert, Mauricio Sarmiento, in the article 30 of the Regulatory Law of Article 5 of the Constitution in its article 30 it establishes that the General Directorate of Professions may extend authorization to interns of the various professions to exercise the respective practice for a term not exceeding three years.
In the same law, in article 53, it is mentioned that social service is a temporary and remunerated job. Said remuneration, according to article 59, when it absorbs all of the student’s activities, must be sufficient to decently satisfy her needs.
Most of our medical interns are in the case of article 59, but this is not fulfilled, their remuneration is miserable.
The precarious working conditions of medical interns in Mexico
A study carried out by teachers from the Faculty of Medicine of the UNAM (Ramírez de la Roche, 2012) that analyzed the working conditions of medical internsconcludes that they assume all the obligations and responsibilities of a general practitioner, but in precarious working conditions.
The amount of the scholarship was on average $1,230.00 pesos per monthamount that did not allow them cover the expenses to live in a dignified manner (despite what the law says). This meant that 7 out of every 10 interns received financial help from someone else to support themselves.
The study confirms what many of us know, interns are exploited without mercy.
Therefore, the social service intern is a student with a temporary authorization to exercise the profession and to perform a job, but without being a worker. This figure may be suitable for many careers, but in the case of medicine it lends itself to many abuses.
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