Nurse anesthetist Ronny Rasmusson receives news in one of two closed operating theaters at Lovisenberg Hospital in Oslo. During normal operation, between four and five planned operations are carried out in this hall daily, but earlier this year it was closed down. Despite state-of-the-art equipment, the hospital was unable to operate the room. There simply weren’t enough nurse anesthetists to hire. Rasmusson is also a specialist nurse at the anesthesia department at the hospital and therefore participates in the recruitment of new colleagues – which is not easy. – In the past year, there have been far fewer applicants than previously, says Rasmusson. He says that it is not unusual for there to be only one applicant per position. – It is very worrying for the future. It is perhaps a sign that too few nurse anesthetists are being trained. In addition, we see that those who apply to us work in nearby hospitals. So we take and give to each other, says Rasmusson. MISSING COLLEAGUES: Ronny Rasmusson enjoys his job at the anesthesia department at Lovisenberg. It is an exciting and professionally interesting job, he says. But due to few new colleagues, Lovisenberg has to close two operating theatres. Photo: Even Bjøringsøy Johnsen / news No applicants It is far from only Lovisenberg who notices that the job market has almost been vacuumed for specialist nurses. At Oslo University Hospital, too, they note that it is difficult to recruit qualified applicants. In several departments, they are struggling to get hold of both anesthesia and intensive care nurses, such as in the neurointensive care unit at Ullevål. There they are looking for three intensive care nurses, but so far they have not received a single application. NO APPLICANTS: Section leader at the neurointensive care unit at Ullevål hospital, Karoline Rugset Solberg, says that they have not received a single applicant for the three positions advertised. Photo: Tore Linvollen / news In several departments they are struggling to get hold of both anesthesia and intensive care nurses, such as at the neurointensive care unit at Ullevål. There they are looking for three intensive care nurses, but so far they have not received a single application. – At the end of a recruitment phase, we often have no more than one, perhaps two relevant applicants. But they have often applied for other positions as well, so it is important to act quickly before they miss out, says section leader Karoline Rugset Solberg. Due to the staffing situation, they lack people at work every single day. – Over the course of a day, we normally lack 4-5 employees at work, says Solberg. Overtime The neurointensive care unit at Ullevål is a department that accepts patients with serious head injuries. The people who work here are highly qualified intensive care nurses, and Solberg is the manager of around 60 permanent employees. – For my employees, there will be a lot of overtime to get it going. In addition, we have to use extra guards, both internally and externally, says Solberg. According to Nav’s company survey, there is a shortage of 700 specialist nurses and midwives in Norway, while there is a shortage of just under 6,000 nurses. The figures are an estimate for the development in the current year. But how many are actually missing right now is difficult to determine, because after two demanding pandemic years, several specialist nurses chose to quit. Waiting for the commission In order to meet the challenges and the shortage of nurses, the government has set up a health personnel commission which will propose measures to train more people. – They must deliver their recommendation at the beginning of February. In addition, we have followed up with educational positions, says Minister of Health Ingvild Kjerkol and aims for 230 new educational positions for specialist nurses. NEW TRAINING PLACES: Health Minister Ingvild Kjerkol says the government has invested in new training places for specialist nurses. Photo: Even Bjøringsøy Johnsen / news Øyvind Skraastad, is head of the emergency clinic at OUS. He says that the new educational positions and investigations do little to help the situation they are in now. – We need some type of immediate measure to cover the deficiencies. For us, it is difficult to understand that it will take several years before we get basic staff who are good enough, he says. The clinic manager praises the nurses at OUS for their professional competence and, not least, their loyalty and contribution to making it work, but admits that it costs money. IMMEDIATE MEASURES: Head of the emergency clinic at Oslo University Hospital, Øyvind Skraastad, describes an extremely demanding staffing situation. – We are struggling to get hold of qualified applicants, he says. Photo: Tore Linvollen / news – It’s an extremely important job, but the lack of labor leads to a lot of wear and tear, also on the managers who have to make sure the rosters are filled, says Skraastad. No “quick fix” Minister of Health Kjerkol has no “quick fix” for the challenges facing hospitals this winter, and says that it is important that the hospital management takes responsibility and ensures that they have services that can accept patients who need help. – I cannot say what each individual hospital will do, but I know that both managers and union representatives are concerned about this, says Kjerkol.
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Can’t get specialist nurses – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
