“This is a toxic institution that crushes ambition,” is how one of eight residents who resigned en masse this week from Tanta University Hospital’s obstetrics and gynecology department described the place, leaving the department seemingly on the brink of collapse.
Four of them turned to Facebook to share searing testimonies, sharing harrowing testimonies about the conditions that pushed them to abandon their dreams. Their accounts included 82-hour shifts, collective punishments such as sleeping on the floor for a week, and frequent verbal humiliation.
“Continuing would have been a betrayal to myself,” wrote resident Raneem Zantout. “Resigning was an act of self-respect.”
She added that the work environment was devoid of professionalism and support, marked instead by a “disturbing normalization of humiliation.” On one occasion, she recalled, the doctors were told outright, “You’re trash.”
Raneen Gabr, the last to submit her resignation, agreed, asserting that the walkout was a logical consequence of a systematic policy. The policy, she said, began when they were told, “You are not welcome here. Hand in your resignations and leave.”
Gabr added that the administration “wanted to see us physically collapse, and for sleeping on the floor to be the norm rather than the exception.”
Stolen moments of rest
That sentiment was echoed by Sara Motawie who noted the department’s reputation for fast-tracked academic progression came at a steep cost. “I discovered I was paying for that with everything else,” she wrote, describing 72-hour shifts, lack of access to clean facilities, and being forced to eat and pray in secrecy.
Other testimonies revealed similarly inhumane conditions. According to Gabr, their shifts often stretched from 48 to 72 hours, followed by ward rounds that brought the total to 82 hours of continuous work. “I swear, during those 82 hours, we slept less than six. We slept on the floor, on delivery beds, even on chairs when no other place was available,” she wrote.
Echoing the same experience, Haidy Hany recounted sleeping on birthing chairs and tiled floors. She revealed a colleague was robbed while dozing next to a mattress frequented by stray cats.
Collective punishment
The pressure wasn’t limited to workload—it extended to unjustified collective punishment. In one instance, recounted Gabr, all residents were forced to stay in the hospital for seven consecutive nights and denied shower access. Others were forced to oversee cleaners and admin staff—duties well outside their medical training.
“They treated us as if we were a burden,” Motawie added. “We were isolated. In other departments, residents are valued. Here, our presence was resented. How do you learn from someone who tramples your dignity?”
Despite promises of swift progress towards postgraduate qualifications, the resigning doctors said the reality was starkly different. “After 11 months, I only learned how to disinfect skin,” wrote Gabr.
Hany added the doctors were arbitrarily told they had to complete an additional six months of residency before they could apply for their master’s degrees, unlike their colleagues. “It was an invention by the department with no legal basis whatsoever,” she wrote.
What was once considered the “privilege” of a university residency has become a “curse,” according to Zantout. Despite the pain, the doctors believe their resignations were the right decision. “I reclaimed my health, my dignity, and myself,” wrote Haidy. “This toxic environment taught me the value of peace of mind.”
For her part, Zantout concluded, “I resigned because I still have ambition. This isn’t the end—it’s the beginning of a new dream.”
Official response
The resignations have drawn the attention of Egypt’s Medical Syndicate, which announced Wednesday evening a number of decisions in response.
In a statement on Facebook, the syndicate said that it had followed up on the complaints and resignations and had contacted the administration of the Faculty of Medicine at Tanta University.
An administrative order was issued to move the gynecology and obstetrics unit to the New Global Educational Hospital. This new facility has a 50-bed capacity, two operating rooms, and a gynecological endoscopy unit. The decision was communicated between Ahmed Mabrouk Elsheikh, head of the Media Committee and syndicate board member, and Ahmed Ghoneim, dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Tanta University.
The statement added that it had been agreed to reduce the on-call shifts from 48 hours to 24 hours, with doctors working a maximum of 12 hours a day, “provided that all residents are available, taking into account the continuation of normal work to serve patients, as well as a rotation system that allows resident doctors to take a break.”
El-Sheikh further emphasized that this crisis “highlights the urgent need to provide a suitable working environment that guarantees minimum humane and professional conditions for young doctors.”
He warned that the continued, unjustified pressure on resident physicians—without regard for their physical and mental capacity—posed a direct threat to their professional development and undermined their ability to deliver safe and effective care.
In the wake of these announcements, Al Manassa reached out to Ahmed Tawfik, head of the hospital’s OB-GYN department. Tawfik said a formal statement addressing the allegations was being prepared but provided no further comment before publication.
The syndicate's intervention is not its first in such a crisis. Six months ago, it responded to a similar situation at the Alexandria Faculty of Medicine that also led to mass resignations over the same concerns.
