Resident physicians rally outside UNM Hospital

Dozens of University of New Mexico Hospital resident physicians wearing white coats or scrubs on Wednesday crowded outside the hospital’s emergency room entrance, holding signs that read “Fair Contract NOW!” and chanting “Union strong, union proud — everybody say it loud.”

They also gave passionate speeches during a half-hour demonstration. The doctors said they planned the event to allow physicians who were either on break or not working could participate so patient care wouldn’t be affected.

At the heart of the rally? Resident physicians are seeking better pay and benefits.

Dr. Alexandra Ninneman, a resident with UNM, said the Committee of Interns and Residents, the union representing roughly half of UNM’s 700-plus resident physicians and fellows, is requesting a 12% pay raise for the resident physicians. She said UNM has offered a 2% raise.

“We’ve been bargaining with UNM for about seven months at this point, and they haven’t really given us anything,” said Ninneman, who is also a regional vice president for the CIR. “I think residents feel disrespected and not that valued.”

UNM Health Sciences spokesman Chris Ramirez said the university wouldn’t comment on the negotiations.

“Any party discussing these details in public would be engaging in bad faith collective bargaining,” he said.

He also pointed out that “trainees” are not hospital employees.

“They are enrollees of the UNM School of Medicine Graduate Medical Education Program,” he said.

Wednesday’s rally marked the first time resident physicians at UNM took such action, CIR spokeswoman Sunyata Altenor said. She said CIR represents about 30,000 resident physicians across 10 states.

About half of the resident physicians at UNM are active members of the union, though all of the 700-plus physicians training with the university benefit from contract negotiations, Ninneman said.

UNM residents are paid on a tiered salary schedule, with first-year physicians in the program making $59,456 and seventh-year residents making $74,288, according to the university. They also get health care benefits.

However, resident physicians in at Wednesday’s rally said the pay is not nearly enough to cover the cost of living while many of them are paying off student loans.

“We have student loan repayments picking back up again and so most of us on average have accrued over $250,000 in student loan debt — and that’s just the average,” said Dr. Rupali Gautam, a resident physician. “It’s definitely a stressful time for a lot of us, not knowing if we can afford rent and things like that.”

It’s especially stressful for resident physicians who come from low-income backgrounds, said Dr. Giovanni Ramirez, a psychiatry resident from Puerto Rico.

“UNM, it’s a great institution to train (at) — they have a very robust program,” Ramirez said. “But oftentimes that robust training involves working extreme hours. Sometimes up to 80 hours a week. ... Medical students who don’t come from a wealthy family — we have to (make) a lot of sacrifices in order to be where we’re at.”

New Mexico has faced a shortage of doctors and health care workers for decades. Groups of physicians lobbied the Legislature to address issues that make it difficult to attract doctors, such as the cost of medical malpractice premiums and the effect of applying gross receipts taxes to medical services.

Dr. Alisha Berry said better working conditions could help address the doctor shortage.

“(They) make UNM a more attractive place for medical training,” Berry said. “Higher salaries allow residents to put down roots here, making it more likely they will stay.”

Ramirez, the spokesperson for UNM Health Sciences, said negotiations with the union are ongoing.

“While organizers representing the CIR may make statements about changes they would like to see, it’s important our community knows that leadership at the UNM School of Medicine and UNM Hospital have been involved in active dialogue with this union for some time and remain committed to ongoing conversations to ensure all trainees feel supported, valued and prepared for the next step in their health care careers,” he said.