Secretary General Michael Opriesnig: “It is positive that long-demanded steps are now finally being taken. Now it can’t just be an announcement.”
Vienna (OTS) – The Austrian Federal Government announced a five-point package of measures for care and support. This includes, among other things, the creation of a competence center for faster recognition of foreign nursing qualifications, a nursing scholarship for those transferring to universities of applied sciences, nationwide standards and expanded competencies for social care professions, transparency in the billing of 24-hour care contracts and the daily use of substitute care.
Increasing need for nursing staff
Michael Opriesnig, Secretary General of the Austrian Red Cross, is pleased: “We have been demanding a lot of this for years. It is positive that further measures are now being taken following the reforms of recent years. What is important is that it doesn’t just stick to the announcement, but that it is also implemented quickly.”
Opriesnig continues: “Why we have long been calling for a competence center for the faster recognition of foreign nursing qualifications can be explained by the bare numbers: 172,507 people work in health and nursing professions in Austria. However, the need for nursing staff is increasing sharply, among other things due to demographic change. It has been known for a long time that we need at least 200,000 additional nursing staff by 2050. In order to be able to meet the rapidly increasing demand, additional nursing staff from abroad are also necessary.”
Attractive career field with a future
Further steps must follow the package that has now been announced, as Opriesnig makes clear: “In training, financial compensation for the practical instructions makes sense. Scholarships for specializations in the tertiary sector should be further supported. Overall, nursing professions must be made more attractive and working conditions must be further improved. Let’s not forget: nursing professions are professions with a future. Being able to help people is a fulfilling task. Nowhere else can you experience the positive effects of the activity so directly.”
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