Suche
Mein Konto
Nursing staff in MV: Alarming increase in sick reports!
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, nursing staff are increasingly sick, which indicates a shortage of staff and increased stress.
Nursing staff in MV: Alarming increase in sick reports!
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, nursing staff are under great strain on their health and have to take sick leave at an above-average rate. According to a study by the AOK, sick leave was 9.7 percent last year, which represents a significant increase compared to 6.7 percent in 2013. The numbers make it clear that nursing staff are sick almost a quarter more often than employees in other sectors, whose sickness rate is 7.8 percent, as AOK Nordost reports.
Drastic effects on nursing staff
The reasons for this high level of sickness include the intense stress during the corona pandemic and the ongoing shortage of staff in the health sector. In 2023, nurses in the region were absent an average of almost nine days due to musculoskeletal disorders - a fifth more often than in other professions. The difference is even clearer when it comes to mental illnesses: nursing staff had to report sick for 7.5 days due to such diagnoses, while employees in all other professions only had to take 4.6 days. This corresponds to an increase of over 60 percent, as the CEO of AOK Nordost, Daniela Teichert, explains.
The AOK also points out that improving working conditions in care facilities is crucial in order to reduce sickness absence. Numerous facilities in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania are already receiving support for company health promotion. Teichert emphasizes that, in addition to employers, politicians are also called upon to reform social care insurance and to meet the increasingly stressful demands of nursing staff, especially with the expected increase in the number of people in need of care in the coming years. Better cooperation with municipalities and greater scope for action for regional care must be created in order to sustainably relieve the burden on care, reports Northern Courier.
Overall, there is a clear need for action to improve the health and working conditions of nursing staff in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. A future-oriented care policy could help to overcome the challenges in the healthcare system more effectively and to ensure the quality of care South German newspaper emphasized.