The ministry of Health and Welfare is planning to raise the percentage of full-time nurses to more than 50 percent of all nurses in the country to encourage an increase in salaries and a mentorship mechanism to keep more fresh recruits on the job, Minister of Health and Welfare Hsueh Jui-yuan (薛瑞元) yesterday said amid a nurse shortage.
Hsueh made the remarks at an international seminar titled “Professional Nursing Development in the Post-Pandemic Era: Preparing the Next Public Health Challenges” held by the Taiwan Nurses Association in Taipei yesterday.
There are more than 310,000 registered professional nurses in the nation, but only 188,879 are working, accounting for less than 60 percent, and some hospitals had temporarily closed beds due to a nurse shortage, ministry data showed.
Photo: CNA
The number of working nurses has consistently increased in the past six years from 169,454 people in 2018 to 187,519 last year, but the increase rates slightly dropped in the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ministry said.
When asked about a nursing union’s suggestion to raise nurses’ salaries, Hsueh said the issue can be discussed, but as Taiwan “is not a communist country,” and there are different types of healthcare facilities, the government cannot dictate a single salary.
If the average nurse’s salary is lower than in other countries, the government can introduce policies to encourage the industry to raise them, he said.
The ministry is planning to increase the number of full-time nurses over contract nurses starting from next year, with a target of more than 50 percent of nurses being full-timers, and as the average salary of public-sector nurses is higher, it would likely push the private sector to raise the salaries, he said.
During his speech, Hsueh first expressed gratitude to nurses for working on the front line during the COVID-19 pandemic, and said the examination attendance rate and practice rate of registered nurses have slightly decreased in the past two years, and the Cabinet last month passed 12 short to long-term strategies to improve nurses’ working environment.
Nurses’ workload should be eased, allowing them to focus only on specific tasks, Hsueh said, adding that many new nurses often leave their jobs within three months as they do not receive enough support, so setting up a mentorship system — having experienced nurses coach and supervise novice nurses during clinical practice — could help more nurses adapt to their new job and remain in the workforce.
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