TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The legislature held a public hearing on Tuesday to address the current nursing shortage, inviting labor unions and medical groups to offer suggestions.
Nursing groups called on the government to subsidize nurses with a monthly allowance of NT$10,000 (US$303) until staffing levels improve. They also called for assurances that a three-shift nurse-patient ratio be enacted in law to guard against overwork, per PTS.
Emergency rooms across Taiwan have been congested following the Lunar New Year, highlighting the nurse shortage. According to the latest survey by the Taiwan Union of Nurses Associations (TUNA), the average nurse turnover rate in 22 medical centers across Taiwan was 10.7% last year and 9.7% in emergency rooms.
TUNA member Lee Tso-ying (李作英) said, "An annual salary of NT$1 million is low compared to overseas salaries because our work is high-risk and high-pressure."
Taiwan Nurses Union Director Chen Ting-wei (陳庭維) said, "We demand the hospital's nursing budget be made public. The Ministry of Health and Welfare should supervise the financial structure of hospitals instead of allowing hospitals to expand while complaining about losing money."
In addition, nursing unions demanded that hospitals increase the base salary of nurses rather than provide bonuses. They also allege the three-shift nurse-patient ratio may be distorted due to calculations based on a monthly average.
Taiwan Medical Association Secretary-General Gao Ruo-hsiang (高若想) said, "If a hospital achieves a three-shift nurse-patient ratio, it will be rewarded. If it does not, there will be no punishment."
Liu Yu-ching (劉玉菁), deputy head of the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Department of Medical Affairs, said, "We have finalized standards for the three-shift nurse-patient ratio, which will be followed by our medical institutions. We will work together to complete the subsequent legal work."
According to MHOW statistics, more than 309,000 individuals hold nursing licenses, but only around 193,000 are practicing, of which only 63% work in hospitals.
MHOW said the Cabinet agreed to implement medium- and long-term policies to solve the nursing shortage with NT$4.7 billion allocated to resolve the problem. Nursing unions want pay to be fairly distributed regardless of hospital level or ward type.
