Nurses stick to nursing as protest action starts

Nurses and midwives yesterday shunned clerical and other non-nursing duties in line with a union directive issued in protest at personnel shortages and lack of staff meals.

The Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses is also demanding that nurses be awarded the professional warrant, promised to them a year ago in their collective agreement.

Keith Vassallo, a nurse working in the operating theatre and a representative of the union, said the staff was overloaded and there was a dire need for more nurses.

Since the migration from St Luke's to Mater Dei Hospital, a total of 15 anesthetic nurses had resigned and were now working in private hospitals or elsewhere and other nurses had applied for transfers to other wards or government hospitals, he added.

The union was also aware that as many as 20 students had completed their nursing course at the University but had not yet been employed.

Mr Vassallo said he also knew of at least one case in which a colleague had applied to continue working beyond retirement age but was turned down without any reason being given.

The purpose of the action, which is indefinite, was to give the government a wake-up call, he said.

The Health Ministry argues that it is doing its utmost to employ more workers in the sector and wants a manpower plan that goes beyond numbers and deals also with the type of work carried out by each category of worker.