Updated at 8.45am with physios news
Nurses assigned to Mater Dei Hospital’s main operating theatres will strike on Monday unless 20 more are deployed to address the staff shortage.
The Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses has registered an industrial dispute, ordering about 200 nurses to strike between 7am and 7pm if more staff are not assigned to the theatre by the end of this week.
Nurses told the Times of Malta they were suffering from severe burnout and “could not take it anymore”. The number of operations had increased to cut down on waiting lists but manpower had not, they noted.
When contacted, MUMN general secretary Colin Galea confirmed the planned strike, noting that negotiations were under way to find a solution.
The number of operations had increased to cut down on waiting lists but manpower had not
He said that although new nurses had graduated in October, they were treated as ‘relievers’ and were assigned as needed. The MUMN had agreed with the procedure, considering the sudden influx of patients during the flu season. However, it had immediately pointed out there were departments, like casualty and the operating theatres, that could not wait for long.
The union had also agreed on exploring two new management avenues, but the nurses at the operating theatres had waited too long, he said.
Although a number of new nurses were deployed at the theatres recently, others had been transferred elsewhere, meaning the addition did nothing to ease the workload, he pointed out.
Nurses said the MUMN wrote to the hospital administration insisting it could not tolerate the “horrible environment” the nurses were working in, given the stress weighing down on them, making it a health and safety issue.
The union is insisting that 20 additional nurses be deployed this week so they will be able to receive supervised training.
All operating theatres bar three, which are protected by employment and industrial law and deemed ‘essential services’, would be hit by a strike.
The Medical Association of Malta announced Tuesday it would be ordering industrial action across health sectors from Monday, accusing the government of failing to consult it prior to announcing the transfer of three State hospitals to Steward Health Care.
The union is insisting that 20 additional nurses be deployed this week
That same day, the MUMN set the stage for an industrial dispute in Gozo, saying the government was meddling in the running of the Gozo General Hospital.
The union said that it had struck a deal with the hospital on new rosters but then nothing happened after management received a telephone call from the Health Ministry.
Should the roster agreement not be honoured by Monday, nurses and midwives would begin industrial action, starting with operating theatres. The action would only apply to Gozo General Hospital staff, the union specified.
The MUMN has also registered a separate industrial dispute concerning physiotherapists, who were set to take industrial action on Monday. This was called off after a meeting was set.
Social workers employed by the Education Ministry also resorted to action on Monday. Their union registered a dispute, saying its calls for a continuous professional development allowance to the social workers were ignored.
Meanwhile, Foundation for Social Welfare Service employees, represented by the UĦM Voice of the Workers, have escalated industrial action pending an agreement over their pay.