The unions say no to the third amendment of legislation promoted by the Ministry of Health in order to ensure the staffing of the private sector with nurses and to manage the lack of staff that has been plaguing hospitals for at least two years.
The quarrels of last April, when the unions reacted to the debate by the Parliament on two previous amendments to legislation through which the employment of nurses from third countries would have been facilitated, seems to continue.
Yesterday, four unions issued a statement stating their opposition to the amendment of the law on private hospitals promoted by the Ministry of Health in order to change the planned ratio of nurses to beds and thus save nursing staff to meet more needs.
The stance of the unions, in all likelihood, will once again lead to the reaction and warnings of private hospitals which, it is recalled, in April had decided to close their departments and clinics in protest.
In yesterday's announcement, the trade unions P.E.O., S.E.K., PA.SY.NO. and PASYDY, stated, among other things:
"Our common belief is that the reduction of the minimum ratio of nurses per patient is a setback and not a modernization, which will inevitably bring about a delay in responding to the needs of patients, will degrade the services provided to patients, to the point that it will endanger human lives, while at the same time it will increase the already burdened burnout observed among nurses."
PASYDY, PASYNO, SEK and P.E.O., "as a united front, we declare that we will stand as a bulwark against the promotion of policies that will degrade the country's health system and the services provided to patients".
In conclusion, they even call on the Ministry of Health "to immediately withdraw the proposal to amend the legislation".
On the part of the private sector, there was no reaction yesterday, however, this must be taken for granted.
With the new development and in combination with the two amendments to the law pending in Parliament, the work of the new parliamentary Health Committee will be rather difficult.
It is worth mentioning, of course, that the parties, when the two amendments were submitted by the Ministry of Health, had decided not to discuss them, in order to avoid clashes with the trade unions in the middle of an election period.
The amendment to change the ratio of nurses to beds has been put by the Ministry of Health in the public consultation process.
In particular, the existing legislation sets minimum ratios of nurses to patients for each shift. For example, in the surgical and pathology units, as well as in the geriatric and obstetrics/gynaecology units, the ratio is one nurse for every five patients during the morning shift, one for every six patients during the afternoon shift and one for every eight patients during the night shift.
With the bill, the proportions are differentiated upwards, allowing each nurse to take on a larger number of patients.
At the same time, an increase in the number of ward assistants is planned. Currently, for hospitalized patients up to six people, a ward assistant is not required, while for seven to fifteen patients one assistant is required, with an additional assistant for every 15 additional patients.
The proposed arrangement provides for one ward assistant for up to six patients, two assistants for seven to fifteen patients and two additional assistants for every fifteen additional patients.
