Locked beds in the state clinics are not uncommon – there is a lack of staff. The problem could get bigger: Vienna is poaching in Salzburg.
Sabine Gabath is a qualified nurse and works council member at the Salzburg State Clinics (SALK). Ms. Gabath, how do you explain the Vienna Health Association’s search for staff in Salzburg? It’s quite simple: all nursing facilities are desperately looking for staff. Unfortunately, this is a global phenomenon. Who do you think is responding to the campaign? I don’t think that appeals to many. Those who want to go to Vienna will go. But that doesn’t necessarily have to do with education or work. But that also applies the other way around for the city of Salzburg. The low birth rates and problems in training – are those the only problems? When I say that nursing care is challenging, nobody goes into the profession. We have to realize that we have a tiring but exciting, maybe the coolest job ever. But we also know that we are going through a dry spell. What has to change to make the job more attractive once and for all? The key is to reduce the number of working hours in care. With 39.5 hours a week, shift work and many night shifts, the job is simply too physically demanding in the long run.
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