Las enfermeras y el derecho a la salud: la defensa del Servicio Nacional de Salud

Resumen

This article addresses the alarming changes occurred in the principles and services provided by the Spanish Healthcare System during the past year, and their consequences on the nursing activity. It has been structured into two parts. The first part focuses on answering the question: What is the impact of our present crisis, and particularly of the measures included in Law RDL-16/2012, on the right to healthcare recognized for Spanish citizens? The second part addresses the responsibility of nurses regarding the defense of the right to healthcare, highlighting the ethical difficulties posed by the rule, and the need to keep healthcare as the axis of all actions. At the end of the article, some proposals are expressed about the commitment to be held by nurses in order to defend said basic right.