Staff from the radiology and ultrasound imaging departments of the National Scientific Medical Centre in Astana have sent a collective appeal to the Minister of Labour and Social Protection of the Population, Svetlana Zhakupova, the Chairman of the Mazhilis, Yerlan Koshanov, and the head of the capital's Sanitary and Epidemiological Control Department, Aigul Shagaltayeva, requesting a review of the results of their workplace conditions assessment.
Our editorial team at FBK has obtained the collective letter itself, in which the centre's staff detailed the events.
According to the letter, doctors and mid-level medical staff who work with X-rays, computed tomography (CT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) received notifications from the centre's administration stating that, based on the assessment conducted by the Temirtau National Centre of Expertise, their workplaces have been classified as normal working conditions.
This means the employees lose the right to additional paid leave, reduced working hours, and higher pay, which they were previously entitled to.
In their appeal, the centre's staff explain in detail why they believe this decision is unfair. They refer to an order from the Ministry of Health and Social Development dated 28 December 2015, which defines the list of industries and positions with harmful working conditions that grant the right to corresponding benefits.
The authors of the letter highlight that they work at a potentially hazardous radiation facility. According to the Ministry of Health's classification, X-ray diagnostic machines and rooms fall under the fourth category of facilities, where the radiation impact in the event of an accident is limited to the premises where work with radiation sources is carried out. Therefore, the entire work process is aimed at ensuring radiation safety, which is confirmed by regulatory legal acts.
In their daily activities, the medical staff follow a comprehensive set of Ministry of Health orders regulating hygiene standards and sanitary-epidemiological requirements for radiation-hazardous facilities.
Particular attention is paid to staff protection. An internal order defines the list of personnel belonging to groups A and B, where the duration of stay for employees in group A, for example, is 1,500 hours per year or 30 hours per week, which effectively means constant work under conditions of potential exposure.
The medics emphasise that over all the years of work, there has not been a single case of overexposure of staff or patients during X-ray examinations. This, in their opinion, proves the competence and professionalism of the medical doctors and nursing staff, who ensure radiation safety standards at their workplaces every day.
It is noted that in December 2024, the employees had already sent a letter to the head of the medical centre, Abay Baigenzhin, requesting a review of the assessment results conducted by experts from Temirtau, but received a negative response.
Now, they are asking higher authorities to help resolve the issue and conduct an additional assessment of working conditions involving independent experts or specialists from the Astana Department of Sanitary and Epidemiological Control and occupational health and safety specialists.
It is commendable that the staff did not give up after the administration's refusal and appealed to the very top — to the Minister of Labour, the Chairman of the Mazhilis, and the head of the sanitary-epidemiological service. The collective appeal shows that people are ready to defend their rights in a civilised manner, through official channels and relying on the law.
The question now is different: are officials ready to admit that working with radiation cannot suddenly become safe based on the results of just one assessment, and restore the legal compensations to the medics? Or will the formal approach of the Temirtau experts prove more important than the actual working conditions?