Raed Arafat, founder of the SMURD emergency service, resigns from Health Ministry after dispute with President over health reform bill

Raed Arafat, the doctor who set the basis of the Mobile Emergency and Intensive Therapy Service (SMURD) in Romania in 1990, has resigned from his position as state deputy secretary in the Health Ministry.

 The decision to resign was the result of a dispute Arafat had with President Basescu and other officials over the stipulations of the Health Reform Bill which regard the emergency medicine.

 Arafat was appointed in this position in August 2007 by then prime minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu, and his attributions lying in emergency medicine.

 Arafat is currently also the coordinator of the Mobile Emergency and Intensive Therapy Service in Romania (SMURD).

 He is also the coordinating doctor of the SMURD station in Targu-Mures, which is the most modern emergency center in Romania.

Read more about

Romanian Olympic Team departs for Paris aboard specially named aircraft “Nadia Comăneci”

read more

 According to the new health bill, the private sector could have access to public funds on an equal par with the public emergency service.

 The public funds for emergency medical assistance this year will be about the same value as last year. On the other hand, according to Arafat, “if this sum will have to be shares with other 10-20-30 private services, each of these will only be able to cover parts of the system. This means there will be one more risk, the reaction to disasters will be uncontrolled, unregulated and inefficient.”

 “The secret to a good functioning of the emergency system is the word ‘integrated’ said the French colleagues when they came to Bucharest. The new law destroys the integrated system,” said Arafat.

 Arafat accuses that the stipulations of this law will introduce commercial competition with less regard for human life.

Otilia Haraga