Will Nurse Working Conditions Improve... Full Expansion of Shift Work Improvement Project

The government pilot project aimed at improving the 'shift work' system, which has been causing a decline in the quality of life for ward nurses, will be expanded ahead of schedule.

Nurses working in the ward during the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

On the 29th, the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced that as a follow-up measure to the 'Comprehensive Plan to Support Nursing Personnel,' the nurse shift system improvement project will be fully expanded 1 year and 9 months earlier than planned.

According to surveys conducted by the Health and Medical Workers' Union and others, about 82% of nurses in general hospital wards work three shifts. Shift work, which frequently changes between morning (day), afternoon (evening), and night shifts, has been identified as one of the causes that lowers nurses' quality of life and leads them to leave the medical field.

Since April last year, the Ministry of Health and Welfare has been promoting a 'shift system improvement pilot project' to enable regular and predictable shift work. In addition to the three-shift system, the project diversifies work methods by offering fixed 8-hour shifts during the day or evening, the option to choose specific time slots on weekdays for 8-hour day or evening shifts, holiday-only shifts, and night-only shifts, allowing nurses to select according to their personal circumstances.

Participating medical institutions receive support for 'replacement nurses' to cover nurse vacancies during sick leave or family events, with one nurse provided per two wards, and 'additional ward nurses' who comprehensively support ward tasks, with one nurse provided per ward. On average, 1.5 nurses per ward are supported (excluding education-dedicated nurses), increasing nursing staff by about 6% per ward compared to before the pilot project. Additionally, to enhance clinical adaptation for new nurses, up to nine education-dedicated nurses are supported depending on the bed capacity.

As of this month, 60 hospitals are participating in the pilot project. The Ministry of Health and Welfare originally planned to conduct the pilot project until April 2025, but during the establishment of the comprehensive nursing personnel support plan announced last April, reflecting field recommendations, it decided to advance and fully expand the project.

The Ministry plans to improve issues identified in the existing pilot project by regularly holding calls for participating institutions every quarter and removing limits on the number of wards per medical institution that can participate. Furthermore, the standard unit cost for nurse wages supported by the government will be adjusted to reflect recent survey results, and the government support rate will be increased from 70% to 80% of the standard unit cost (remaining at 70% for tertiary general hospitals).

The Ministry will accept applications for participating institutions from the 3rd to the 28th of next month. Based on the evaluation of the project's effectiveness, plans to establish legal and institutional measures will be prepared next year. Park Min-su, the 2nd Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, stated, "Recently, two nurses at a hospital I visited seriously considered resigning years ago, but after the hospital introduced a flexible work system, they have continued long-term employment instead of resigning. This flexible work system (shift system improvement project) was proposed to be expanded to other hospitals nationwide, which led to the decision to fully expand the pilot project ahead of schedule." He added, "Through this, we will rapidly improve the working environment so that essential medical personnel, nurses, can work long-term, and furthermore, actively strive to provide better inpatient services to the public."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.