Support from the medical profession
Lauterbach wants to give nursing staff more powers
December 19, 2023, 7:02 p.m
“Nursing is allowed to do less than it can,” says Health Minister Lauterbach about the industry affected by the shortage of skilled workers. Additional skills for nursing staff are intended to make their profession more attractive and speed up work processes. The nursing council and the medical profession support his plan.
Health Minister Karl Lauterbach’s plan to give nursing staff more rights and competencies is receiving support from doctors and nurses alike. Both sides assured this after a top meeting in Berlin. The necessity is not in question, emphasized Medical President Klaus Reinhardt. The President of the German Nursing Council, Christine Vogler, spoke of a “quantum leap towards upgrading the nursing profession”.
Lauterbach announced that he would present a draft law “in the next few weeks”, which should be approved by the cabinet by the summer of 2024. According to a key points paper, it is envisaged, among other things, that nursing staff – depending on their level of training – can take on more responsibility in wound care and can independently prescribe nursing services, aids or even certain medications. This is intended to prevent you from having to wait for a doctor’s prescription for a bladder catheter or a special hospital bed.
Relief for the medical profession
“This saves us an incredible amount of resources,” said Vogler. Reinhardt sees the project as more of a relief for the medical profession: Given demographic developments, fewer doctors will have to treat a larger number of people in the future. Lauterbach also assured: “Nobody loses anything.”
In view of the shortage of skilled workers in nursing, the planned reform is intended to make the profession more attractive – also for workers from abroad. “Care is allowed to do less than it can – that’s a huge problem,” said Lauterbach. “This means we are losing potential nursing staff at all ends.”