Cynthia Busuttil
Nurses to step up action
Nurses have resolved to take their fight with the government over understaffing to new heights, threatening to stop treating patients at Boffa Hospital from Monday when they are understaffed.
Nurses will also stop admitting patients to Zammit Clapp Hospital and St Vincent de Paul Residence for the elderly, which are both full to capacity, unless more staff is employed, and extra beds will be removed. Those working at the hospital's Renal Unit will no longer be on call.
Moreover, nurses are also threatening to walk out of operating theatres if the government goes ahead and employs nursing technicians, whose qualifications are deemed inferior. District health centres will be shut down until the problem is resolved, the president of the Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses, Paul Pace told a rally, attended by some 100 nurses and midwives, last night.
Nurses have also been ordered not the change dressings of patients who are not in their ward and patients will not be allowed to wait in pantries before undergoing surgery when no beds are available. Theatre nurses will start taking their break on time and a work-to-rule directive has been ordered across the board.
The MUMN called for the resignation of John Cachia, the director general for health care services, who they say is partly to blame for the acute nursing shortage.
The long-drawn dispute revolves around staff shortages, the failure to provide staff meals and the lack of a professional warrant.
Nurses have been taking industrial action since the end of October, declining non-nursing duties and taking blood samples, a measure which has affected hundreds of people and left the authorities with no choice but to stop non-emergency blood tests at health centres.
"This is not a fight against patients but against the authorities. We want the necessary staff complement in order to be able to give a better service," Mr Pace said.
He accused Social Policy Minister John Dalli of being disloyal, failing to observe the provisions of the collective agreement signed last year and ignoring the union's proposals of a five-year-plan. "How can we sign an agreement with the Prime Minister and then it is not respected? Who is the Prime Minister, Dr Gonzi or Mr Dalli?"
Mr Pace said the authorities had given up on employing more nurses and were instead looking to employ nursing technicians in a bid to open more operating theatres. But the union believed these new staff members did not have the necessary skills to safeguard patient safety.
"We are not going to be accomplices in jeopardising patient safety. The minute they arrive, we will be walking out of theatres," he warned.
Present for the rally was Malta Union of Teachers president John Bencini.
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In Discussion
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Carmel Vella
Nov 19th 2008, 18:13
@ C. Camilleri
Nurses when NOT on industrial action perform many tasks not included in their job description. Now they are only performing only duties included in thier job decsription. It is as simple as that.
Should they have their pay deducted when they are carrying out all duties in their job description?
Joseph E Briffa
Nov 19th 2008, 17:29
May I ask whether the dispute is about the lack of availability of nurses or about the failure of the Health Authorities to recruit nurses? I believe the Parliamentary Secretary for Health stated recently in the House that 122 nurses were employed this year and also admitted that despite this action there is still a shortfall of 170 nurses. So the shortage is acknowledged by the Health Authorities. But what is keeping the Health Authorities from recruiting nurses to make up for this shortfall - is it a question of lack of funds or lack of nurses? The MUMN is pointing fingers at the DG and the Minister. Can we have the reaction of the Health Authorities to this accusation and of their plans to try and solve the matter?
Maria Dolores Fenech
Nov 19th 2008, 17:15
@lgalea
Hadtli l-kliem minn halqi!
It looks like you never had the chance to see how hard these people work? Unlike you, I don't mind paying taxes for these people. But I mind if I have to pay taxes for Clyde Puli going to China for a fortnight to watch the Olympic games, for Mins. Austin Gatt's Jaguar, etc.
These people have the right for a rise in their salary. Or is it becoming a habit for this govt to make people shut up when they want to negotiate for what is rightfully theirs?
lgalea
Nov 19th 2008, 16:06
C.Camilleri
If you think that the nurses are paid enough and have nothing to complain about, why don't you go and work as a nurse?
Gonzipn has money to squander on other things such as a new Jaguar, but when it comes to the workers it is the perfect SCROOGE.
C.Camilleri
Nov 19th 2008, 14:52
@ Maria Dolores Fenech. Because first of all there is money involved and this does not come from heaven. It comes from our taxes which everyone including you do not like to pay.
Secondly as a taxpayer i object to my money being used to pay hospital staff who are not doing their full day's duty. This is something unheard of in the private sector.
The call of the many capricious strikes in the public sector is due to the fact that unlike in the private sector the workers continue to receive their full pay. This is shameful and a squandering of our money.(including M.D.Fenech) It also shameful that when the private workers are worried about keeping their job, we have workers in the public sector demanding more.
Dr. John Zammit
Nov 19th 2008, 11:20
The Alleanza Liberal-Demokratika supports the nurses as this problem now is overdue and it is the Government to blame. As I myself like most of persons who are over fifty years need to attend several times to health centres, hospital for care, it is a shame on the Government that he knew of the problem long time ago and persisted in leaving the problem growing and do nothing. We hope that the GonziPN Government that made alot of promises before the election of February 2008 will solve this problem immediately and give it a priority over other problems because there is the health of all Maltese citizens at risk. - Dr. John Zammit, Leader, Alleanza Liberal-Demokratika Malta. www.malta-liberals.org
Maria Dolores Fenech
Nov 19th 2008, 10:26
Why is this government so stubburn in everything he does?
Does anyone remember PN past electoral slogan 'DJALOGU'? What happened? Oh, but then we had Dr Eddie Fenech Adami for PM, which shows that GonziPN does not believe in 'DJALOGU' but in bulldozing!
Shame!
Stephen Sultana
Nov 19th 2008, 10:04
Good to know that now we have the third Prime Minister in this country!!!!
Another disgrace!!!! Due to this antisocial GonziPn Government, incompetence is reigning. Patients are suffering from such actions and Government should act without losing more time.
Why disputes need to escalate?!?
Dr Gonzi, please wake up!!! Get around table and negotiate the long outstanding issues as requested by the MUMN.
Frans Sammut
Nov 19th 2008, 09:45
So, thanks to Mr Dalli one cannot be sure of finding a bed in hospital if the need arises. What next? I am sure Mr Dalli will consider me "a pest" for posting this comment. No problem, I won't be the first to be thus labeled. Fine way to treat citizens!