If you watched German public news last night, you'd notice this extended story over nursing, and a deal struck with Kosovo....so I'll lay out the whole landscape.
German nurses will generally tell you that they are frustrated with the system, the hardships, and the pay. There are around 1.6 million full-up nurses and nurse-helpers across Germany today. The medical establishment will tell you that they are in crisis stage because the number simply isn't enough, and every year.....some nurses pack up and leave (mostly for private clinics in Europe, Canada, or Australia).
So yesterday, the German Health Minister (CDU, Jens Spahn) packed up and went to Kosovo for a handshake-tour and signed an agreement. Basically, there's going to be a combined effort to get Kosovo nurses up to a level via language and nursing training....that they would have a certificate that applies in both countries.
For the Kosovo folks, it's a plus-plus deal and they are virtually guaranteed a job for the rest of their lives....plus a chance to move to Germany. For German nurses viewing the deal....there's frustration because it helps the pay situation stay stagnant.
Language issues? Well....there are programs in Vietnam and the Philippines, with the immigrant nurses already showing up, and language issues are continually part of the process.
What's all of this really add up to? If you were a German and had to go over to the hospital for an extended stay of four weeks, the odds are that you'd have to deal with at least one non-German nurse from the various shifts, and in the future....it'll just increase. Even if you question the logic of this trend, there's no other magic solution to resolve this direction.
2 comments:
Yeah this drives me mental. My wife worked as a Nurse here, and she recently quit. The lack of respect for the profession is disgraceful, and I threatened to punch more than one Doctor who thought it was their prerogative to yell at her whenever they felt like it.
Once again the right wing CDU opts for the short term fix. Bring in more foreigners, not caring that it just delays the problem for the next generation.
After watching the segment, I sat there and pondered how German doctors will react with the foreign nurse crowd, and if this doesn't accelerate them leaving as well. If you read through the material....there's another major cutback of German hospitals/clinics coming.
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