Doctors and nurses in Portugal have launched a two-day strike over sweeping cuts in the health budget, in a protest expected to cause widespread disruption to patients.
Unions across the country said they were expecting the biggest turnout in the health sector in more than two decades in protest at cuts amounting to 800 million euros ($A968 million) introduced to meet the terms of a multi-billion euro bailout deal.
"We have no doubt that the strike will be a resounding success and that the protest will assemble thousands of white coats," said Mario Jorge Neves, head of the National Federation of Doctors.
The strike on Wednesday will cause widespread disruption to patients with 400,000 appointments and nearly 4500 operations cancelled, according to estimates from the Portuguese health ministry.
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