October 18th: Doctor's Day

October 18th was chosen as "Doctors' Day" because it is the day consecrated by the Church to Saint Luke. The choice of Saint Luke as the patron saint of doctors and October 18th as "Doctors' Day" is common to many countries, such as Portugal, France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Poland, England, Argentina, Canada, and the United States.

This year, I want to dedicate my tribute to the doctors who make medicine a profession that fights to reduce the suffering of those who have an illness or disease that puts their health or even their lives at risk.

The medical code of ethics in force in Brazil makes it clear that "medicine is a profession at the service of health, of the human being and of the community and, therefore, must be practiced without discrimination of any kind." However, disregarding the medical code of ethics, we have sadly witnessed, in recent days, doctors comparing Cuban professionals to domestic workers, discriminating against both Cuban doctors and domestic workers at once.

It must be made clear that the arrival of Cuban doctors fulfills a federal government program that addresses the needs of the population, in accordance with Article 196 of the 1988 Federal Constitution and the principles of Law 8.080 of September 19, 1990, namely: universality, comprehensive care, regionalization, decentralization, hierarchy, and social participation.

Therefore, Article 196 leaves no doubt that the State must provide the population with health services and, to that end, must adopt strategies to fulfill its duty, so that the institution of the Mais Médicos program, through Provisional Measure 621/2013, is a positive action by the Federal Government to realize a right of the population, as provided for in the 1988 Constitution.

According to the Ministry of Health, there is no internationally recognized and valid parameter that establishes an ideal ratio of doctors per inhabitant. Therefore, the ratio of 2,7 doctors per 1.000 inhabitants is used as a reference, which is the ratio found in the United Kingdom, the country that, after Brazil, has the largest universal public health system, oriented towards primary care.

In this scenario, for Brazil to reach the same ratio of doctors per capita, an additional 168.424 doctors will be needed.

Another serious issue is the unequal regional distribution of doctors: while the Federal District has 3,46 doctors per 1.000 inhabitants, Maranhão has only 0,58 doctors per 1.000 inhabitants. This means that many citizens lack access to, for example, a simple medical consultation.

As a doctor and activist in the fight for a more just society with less inequality, I pledge my support to government programs that aim to contribute to the reduction of preventable deaths, especially infant and maternal mortality, as well as to the reduction of inequalities in access to medical services, not only regionally but also locally.

Thus, on this October 18th, I pay tribute to the doctors who put medicine at the service of human health and the community, who practice it without any discrimination, and who dream of a just society in which everyone has the right to a full life.

"No one is born hating another person because of the color of their skin, or their background, or their religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can also be taught to love." - Nelson Mandela