"Simple solutions for staffing shortages are not available" – Groningen – DVHN.nl



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The Groningen University Medical Center decided last week to close four operating rooms for the rest of the year, as there are not enough room assistants d & # 39; transaction. Earlier this year, CEO Jos Aartsen warned that staff shortages in all sorts of areas were causing problems. For example, the UMCG had to "close" a number of intensive care beds because there was a shortage of intensive care nurses.

The UMCG is not the only one. The Thirty Zorggroep has a shortage of pediatricians, so that delivery to the Emmen hospital is no longer possible. In other parts of the country, hospitals have also closed some parts of the children's service due to a shortage of specialized nurses. There is a shortage of general practitioners across the North and also a number of medical specialists, such as ophthalmologists and geriatricians.

"It's a combination of factors," says a spokesman for the UMCG. "Nurses in the children's department often opt for home care, ok assistants often go to ambulances, and by chance many people retire or work elsewhere in the UMCG."

Problems are still manageable . Other hospitals like the Martini can take over some of the operations, even if it becomes difficult. But it is important to work on real solutions.

It is not so simple. This usually involves work for which long and heavy training is needed. The UMCG has appointed a number of assistants from India ten years ago, who had been specially recruited for this. It was not easy. ,, In the operating room, it revolves mainly around communication. At the time, we had highly qualified assistants, who had already gained experience in India. But communication with colleagues was difficult.

It is not just about language. Team work is important in operations, and opening on possible mistakes. While in Dutch culture, we expect people to honestly admit their mistakes, it is much more difficult in other cultures.

Politics does not have a solution either. Hospitals need to exchange more staff, to appoint different members of parliament. Aukje de Vries of the ruling VVD party: "Insurers and hospitals can, for example, ensure that children are helped at another hospital or contract out loans." According to Marcel Daniels, general president of medical specialists Federation, this can be a networking solution and let the doctors turn around. It stimulates, at the same time, the exchange of knowledge and expertise between hospitals and doctors, which raises the average level of knowledge in both places and makes the hospital more attractive. at work. "

According to the UMCG, this only helps a little:" All hospitals suffer from shortages. "There are not ten nurse anesthetists left."

So you have to train more nurses and doctors It costs a lot of time and money, but there are grant programs for returnees and other incentives for people to get away from it. 39 other sectors to work in health care. But yes, more and more staff shortages are starting to appear in other areas as well.

The shortage also has advantages for good and well-educated nurses and assistants. Self-employed workers and those working through secondment agencies have many choices and can set higher wage requirements. EMUs have only agreed not to work with freelancers. "If you want to make demands on the quality of your employees, you have to put them into service," said the spokesman.

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