Nursing Verification System Adds Feature to Identify Nursing Aides | 100,000 Nurses Short by Organization Standard

According to the head of the Iranian Nursing Organization, one of the indicators for assessing nurse migration in the past was the number of requests for Good Standing certificates. Now the rate of receiving this certificate has dropped to one-quarter of what it was two years ago, but this decline does not necessarily mean that the outflow of manpower has improved.

According to Ambassador Arjan, Dr. Ahmad Najadian, the head of the Nursing System Organization, in the Nurses' Day press conference, referring to the country's economic and social conditions and its effect on the health system employees, said: "The country is not in normal conditions, and although the military war has apparently stopped, there are still concerns in various areas." Economic pressures have also affected the lives of salary earners, including health system employees; A group whose income does not match the economic conditions and living expenses.

Emphasizing the role of national solidarity in overcoming crises, he added: Iranian people stood by the country during the days of war, despite their differences in views and tastes, and this solidarity shows that they belong to Iran.

Lack of more than 100 thousand nurses in the country

The head of the nursing system organization said about the lack of manpower in medical centers: one of the basic problems in the field of nursing is the lack of a common definition of the standard of manpower required in hospitals. A standard accepted by one institution may not be accepted by another institution.

Nejatian continued: According to the standard of the Nursing System Organization, we need 1.8 nurses for each hospital bed, and according to this standard, the country is facing a shortage of more than 100,000 nursing personnel. This is despite the fact that the ratio of nurses to beds in some other countries is more than 3 people.

He emphasized: The lack of human resources, along with work pressure and livelihood problems, is one of the important challenges of the nursing system, and to maintain the quality of medical services, a solution must be found for it.

The withdrawal of 3,500 nurses from government hospitals

Nejatian said about the latest situation of migration and resignation of nurses: Last year, about 3,500 people left the public hospitals. This issue is not limited to last year and in recent years we have been faced with the phenomenon of migration and departure of nurses from medical environments.

Pointing to the decrease in requests for documents required for immigration, he added: In the past, one of the indicators of nurses' migration was the number of requests for Good Standing certificates. Now, the rate of receiving this certificate has decreased to a quarter compared to the last two years, but this decrease does not necessarily mean an improvement in the human resources situation.

The head of the nursing system organization explained: Our concern is that some nurses, instead of migrating, have stayed at home or turned to other jobs. This situation is not favorable for the health system; Because the trained manpower that should serve in hospitals and medical centers is removed from the cycle of providing services.

67% increase in nursing tariffs

The head of the nursing system organization criticized the status of nursing tariffs and stated: One of our serious criticisms is the way of determining and distributing the income from nursing tariffs. We believe that these tariffs are very low compared to the amount of activity, responsibility and effort of nurses.

He continued: Last year, it was agreed that nursing tariffs would increase by 100%, but surprisingly, this increase was about 67%. This is despite the fact that in some other groups even a 120% increase happened.

Nejatian emphasized: A 67% increase may seem like a significant figure on the surface, but when the basis of payment is around 6 million tomans, such an increase cannot answer the economic problems of nurses.

Nurses still receive last year's arrears

The head of the nursing system organization also said about the delay in paying the nurses' claims: In addition to the low tariffs, we are facing the problem of long-term arrears; So that at the end of Mehr this year, some nurses still receive the tariff related to March last year.

He added: Of course, the payment situation is better in some universities of medical sciences, but in the current inflationary conditions, such delays are considered an injustice to the nursing community.

Criticizing the lack of transparency in the tariff calculation formula, Nejatian said: nurses do not have accurate information about the reason for the difference in payments, and the current formula does not have enough transparency. We have submitted our suggestions to amend this formula to the Ministry of Health, and we hope that the process of calculating and distributing revenues will be more transparent.

Necessity of proper distribution of nurses' service budget

The head of the nursing system organization pointed to another problem in the field of payment and said: some services that are actually performed by nurses are registered in the names of other people, including doctors' colleagues; While the provider of the service is a nurse and is also legally responsible for it.

He added: It is necessary to register the services performed by the nurse in his own name. Of course, these services may be performed under the supervision of a doctor and the role of the doctor cannot be removed from them, but the benefits of providing the service should be distributed among them according to the role of the people.

Nejatian also said about the need for the medical community to support the demands of nurses: Our relationship with the medical community and the organization of the medical system is appropriate, and many doctors are defenders of nurses' rights. In this field, there is good cooperation and companionship between the two groups.

Identification of a person without a nursing degree in the position of hospital supervisor

The head of the nursing system organization warned about the activities of people without professional qualifications in the field of nursing services and said: the phenomenon of "nurses" is one of the serious problems in this field. Various institutions have asked the nursing system organization to enter into the issue, but this organization does not have sufficient legal tools for supervision.

Stating that the main responsibility of monitoring nursing services rests with the Ministry of Health, he added: If the nursing system organization is given the authority to monitor nursing services in the private sector and home care centers, we are fully prepared to carry out this responsibility.

Nejatian explained about the results of setting up the nurse inquiry system: After this system was activated, one of Tehran's quasi-government hospitals informed us that one of its supervisors basically does not have a nursing degree. Other cases were also identified in the investigations.

He continued: the situation in the field of home care is more worrying; Because basically we don't know what percentage of people who work in this field are real and professionally qualified nurses.

According to the head of the nursing system organization, in the proposal to amend the law of this organization, an effort has been made to strengthen its supervisory role in order to provide the possibility of dealing more effectively with the activities of unqualified people.

How foreign nurses work

Nejatian also explained about the activities of foreign nurses in the country's medical centers: In this field, we are facing two groups; The first group are nationals who do not have a legal permit to work in Iran. If such people are working in hospitals, they should leave the treatment centers.

He added: The second group are foreigners who work in medical centers legally and with the approval of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Labor. These people are mainly Afghan nationals who were born in Iran, studied and went through the legal procedures of obtaining work permits.

Referring to the development of the regulations for the registration of these people, the head of the nursing system said: the relevant regulations have been prepared and the system for registering their information is supposed to be finalized next week. This action does not mean the membership of foreign nationals in the nursing system organization and only their information will be recorded.

He also said about the number of foreign nurses: the Ministry of Labor has informed us of limited statistics and after completing the registration process, the exact number of these people will be determined.

Necessity of home nursing care insurance coverage

Emphasizing the importance of developing home care services, Nejatian said: one of the issues that has received less attention is nursing care at home. These services can play a very important role in caring for the elderly and terminally ill patients in the future.

He continued: "Unfortunately, the importance of this area is still not properly understood in the health system and the current regulation needs serious revision." Despite the follow-ups, a new regulation that solves the existing problems has not yet been announced.

Referring to the costs of these services, the head of the nursing system organization added: In the current situation, mostly wealthy people can use home care services, while low-income groups should also benefit from these services.

He emphasized: The development of insurance coverage for home care services can provide people with fairer access to these services and should become one of the priorities of the health system.

Preparation of nurses for war conditions and possible crises

Referring to the experience of the country's recent crises, the head of the nursing system said: "During wars and crises, the importance of some occupational groups becomes more apparent to the society than before." Just as reliable media plays an important role in providing correct information and preventing fear in critical situations, health system employees and especially nurses also play an essential role in maintaining the peace and hope of the society.