Care crisis: securing health care through education!
01.02.2023 11:57
On January 31, 2023, the President of the German Professional Association for Nursing Professions (DBfK), Prof. Christel Bienstein, Prof. Annette Grüters-Kieslich, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and member of the National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, as well as Dr. Bernadette Klapper, Federal Managing Director of the DBfK, with those responsible from the Bundestag and the Ministry of Health about the future of health care and possible solutions to counter the care crisis.
“There is already a shortage of at least 100,000 nurses in Germany and the shortage is expected to double by 2030,” warned DBfK President Christel Bienstein. “The nursing crisis is already a reality in all nursing areas. In order to secure care, we have to rethink it with more university-trained nurses. Investments in nursing education are a must on this path.”
Higher education nursing education is a key to solving the problem
Annette Grüters-Kieslich emphasized that higher education nursing education is a key to solving the problem: “We urgently need a national master plan for nursing and thus for health care for the population. The shortage of personnel in the nursing professions is already leading to quantitative and qualitative gaps in care. In an international comparison, we see that university-trained nurses in particular take on a key role in patient-related care." The expanded skills acquired in bachelor's and master's degree programs would be due to the increasingly complex requirements in acute and long-term care also urgently needed in primary care that needs to be strengthened.
Expand and promote study programs
“In primary care, we will need community health nurses trained at master’s level in the future: for sustainable prevention, to support caring families and to ensure basic medical care, especially in rural areas,” added DBfK Federal Managing Director Bernadette Klapper. To achieve this, the study programs would have to be expanded and promoted.
Training and further education were neglected
Annette Grüters-Kieslich sees a major reason for the nursing crisis in the fact that training and further education have been neglected. Investments in nursing education and, above all, the expansion of nursing degree programs are therefore also necessary in order to effectively counteract the shortage of personnel. “It is unlikely that the attractiveness of the nursing profession will be significantly improved without greater academization. In neighboring countries with more academically trained nurses, there is much stronger interprofessional collaboration on an equal footing. This also makes the profession more attractive for those interested in university entrance qualifications, who make up a large proportion of school leavers in Germany.”
Fundamental reforms necessary
In addition to expanding the degree programs, it is important that the highly trained nursing specialists are then able to use their skills in everyday professional life. “In order for the expertise of the nursing profession to really come into play, the legal framework must be created. This includes that nurses are allowed to practice medicine and independently determine care needs. “To do this, we need continuous educational paths from assistantships to professorships that open up career paths and thus keep colleagues in the profession and attract new ones,” said DBfK President Bienstein. Grüters-Kieslich added: “Fundamental reforms are necessary so that health care can be guaranteed.”
The nursing profession must be included in these reform processes on an equal basis and in a shaping manner. “We need your courage for these fundamental reforms,” concluded Bienstein.
The nursing profession must be included in these reform processes on an equal basis and in a shaping manner. “We need your courage for these fundamental reforms,” concluded Bienstein.