12-point plan to boost nurse numbers and improve work conditions

At Thursday's weekly Cabinet meeting, Premier Cho Jung-tai received a briefing from the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) on a 12-point strategic plan to boost the nation's nursing workforce. The premier said the MOHW is forging ahead with this administration's policy to expand medical investment and build a healthier Taiwan, adopting a diverse range of workforce retention measures to ameliorate nursing staff shortages and supply and demand imbalances.

The premier said the plan will create more positive workplace environments to improve nursing staff retention by employing a wide range of measures such as directly increasing pay for night-shift nursing staff, rewarding hospitals that meet specific nurse-patient ratios across all three work shifts, awarding recognition to exemplary nurse-friendly workplaces, and developing clinical mentorship systems for new nurses. These efforts will also prepare the nation to have enough nursing staff to meet the needs of the aging population projected for 2030.