Health ministry aiming to stabilise nursing staff via salary hikes and bonuses

The Health Ministry said on Monday that it wants to increase the salaries of nurses in order to stabilise staff rapidly. It also signalled other systematic measures, such as subsidies for students, bonuses for graduates, an option to return to work in one's place of birth, language training and a one-off recruitment subsidy. According to the ministry, the problem with the shortage of nurses in Slovakia is gradually worsening. While in 2004 the average stood at 6.7 nurses per 1,000 inhabitants, in 2008 the figure dropped to 6.28. In 2016 it was 5.74, and in 2022 only 5.4 nurses per 1,000 people.