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Frankfurt / Main (dpa / lhe) - In the corona pandemic, the reputation of nursing staff has risen, but from the perspective of a health expert, the job is even less attractive than before.
In order for Germany to have enough nurses and carers, a lot must change, said Prof. Thomas Busse of the German Press Agency.
"But these changes are not a sprint, but a marathon."
Busse is director of the Center for Health Economics and Law at the University of Applied Sciences in Frankfurt.
“More people now know how important care is,” says Busse.
"But the carers have none of it."
It is not enough to hand 1000 euros into everyone's hands.
Instead of short-term premiums, there must be long-term changes.
Point one: a higher salary.
“The gap between the salaries of doctors and nurses is widening.
On-call duty is not taxable, ”said Busse - the opposite would have to happen.
Point two: Relief of non-care activities.
"The documentation is getting more and more extensive, that usually depends on the nursing staff."
Point three: use modern technology.
"Pick up that bell over the bed - that could be better organized today."
Point four: more personal responsibility.
"Doctors and nurses should be able to communicate on an equal footing."
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According to Busse, the fact that many nursing staff do not feel valued is also due to “the fact that hospitals are still extremely hierarchical structures”.
In addition, sisters and carers often have to take on pastoral care.
"You are often the only one the patient can talk to."
Busse suggests introducing “ward social workers” in order to relieve the nursing staff.
In order to make the nursing profession attractive for younger people, not only the profession itself has to change, but also its image in public, said Busse.
"We have to make it clear that this is a beautiful, fulfilling, interesting job."
The Corona crisis has just not brought that to light - rather the opposite: "In autumn, the nursing staff entered the second wave relatively exhausted," says Busse.
"The summer was not used to relieve the carers and to prepare for the winter, but rescheduled for the operations that were postponed in the spring - a compulsion from the flat-rate financing."
Center for Health Research