The Andalusian Anti-Fraud Office is investigating whether the Virgen del Rocío Hospital in Seville, the epicenter of the breast cancer screening crisis, paid irregular bonuses to two intermediate nursing positions in the maternal-fetal medicine, genetics and reproduction clinical management unit. The two coordinators of this unit would have received salary supplements for night and holiday shifts without having worked them. The problem is the scale of the alleged fraud, since these intermediate positions are only a sample of an irregular practice that occurs in many intermediate positions in the 51 Andalusian hospitals, according to the officials consulted.
Alongside the Andalusian Anti-Fraud Office, the Andalusian Health Service (SAS) and the Regional Ombudsman are also investigating the matter internally. “These people, chosen as trusted personnel, would have ceased to exercise direct assistance functions, would devote themselves exclusively to administrative support and internal management tasks, benefiting from the benefit of working only from Monday to Friday in the morning shift, with no obligation to cover nights, public holidays or rotating shifts (…). These people would continue to unduly receive the associated salary supplements”, we read in the complaint, filed on October 29 and which remains under investigation, as confirmed this by the regional control body. If evidence of crimes such as embezzlement of public funds is identified, anti-fraud will refer the case to the prosecutor’s office.
The complainants estimate the amount allegedly defrauded at 108,000 euros over the last five years, to which would be added the professional performance supplement – around 3,000 euros per year – and they propose to the control body “a simple verification” with the team sheets of the head of unit, the signature sheets for attendance at work and the paid pay slips. The SAS limits itself to confirming that “it has received a communication via the internal information system and is carrying out an analysis of the information received with maximum rigor and transparency”. But it does not specify whether it will claim the money allegedly unduly received or what the total amount is. At the same time, the Andalusian Government (PP) avoids specifying whether there are more responsible people affected by irregular bonuses among the 266 intermediate positions and 23 managers of the region’s reference hospital.
The supervising nurse of this unit Virgen del Rocío, with the initials SA, resigned and, after presenting his resignation, returned to his duties and sent this message to the nurses: “From today I am your supervisor. I have revoked my resignation and, in principle, I am alone in the office. A new supervisor will arrive shortly and there will officially be two of us.” The supervisor was responsible for the two coordinators listed by the plaintiffs and refused to respond to this newspaper.
The obstacle arises over time because many hospital departments need positions coordinating teams made up of dozens of nurses and assistants, but these chosen people no longer receive salary supplements for leave and their salaries are reduced, so paradoxically they would earn less money despite their new coordination work. A manager of the nursing unit of this hospital comments anonymously: “It is not possible that, since they are not standardized, certain positions ask you for it out of love for the system, especially those of us who believe in the public. This leads to situations of temporary positions which have always existed. These are unrecognized functions.” Decree 132/2021 regulates the appointment of management positions and intermediate positions in the SAS, but it is not always applied, confirm the half-dozen officials consulted.
Competitions for intermediate positions involve the presentation of a project and an economic and scientific report evaluated by a court, but intermediate positions are extended to the entire territory. “The circuit for appointing intermediate positions involves the request to the central services of the SAS, but it takes time to make these calls. You put the supervisor on hold for these procedures, but the SAS is happy that it is moving slowly,” criticizes a former director of nursing at a hospital in Granada who requests anonymity. Another manager says that in recent years, replacements have been accelerated to reduce temporary workers.
In nursing, the figure of the coordinator only exists in health centers and in the mental health unit. In hospitals, the ladder starts with supervisors, then block heads, deputy directors and directors.
This administrative parsimony also affects medical executives, not only nurses and administrators, but doctors continue to work on call and do not lose their salary. “I worked for four years as head of department without appointment and with the same salary as an Indian. And finally, they appointed me head of section (lower category) despite the functions of head of department at the Virgen de Macarena hospital. They appeal to your responsibility and the difficulties of the service, and you know that with a little more effort you can do the job, but without contractual support”, explains Rafael Arranz, former head of the radiophysics department of this Sevillian hospital. “Mine cries to heaven, but in the end, the acceleration of the appointment depends on the contacts of the duty manager with the central services,” he resigns himself. The appointment of a department head, who comes after the section head in a hospital, generally brings an increase of around 500 euros per month to doctors.
Daniel Gutiérrez, spokesperson for the public space CC OO, censures: “It is difficult for Central Services to authorize appointments to intermediate positions because this means an increase in staff in the centers and leaving a basic position in reserve. The centers are financially stifled. On the other hand, intermediate positions are generally not attractive for professionals since the remuneration is not very high.” Antonio Macías, of the UGT, concludes: “They only have to apply the decree of intermediate positions. If they do not do it, it is because of a dark interest or because they are very bad at management.”
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