Health minister claims success in stopping exodus of nurses after new data shows growth in medical employee numbers and their salaries

The Czech government has managed to stop the continuous decline of nurses and midwives in hospitals, with the number of doctors also steadily growing, says Czech Health Minister Adam Vojtěch. A new cohort of doctors is also in line as the capacity of graduates at medical faculties has been increased by 15 percent, according to Mr Vojtěch.

The statement came in light of new data released by the Czech Statistics Agency on Friday that showed a significant increase in state medical practitioner salaries. Nurses in acute care unites, for example, are receiving CZK 50,660 in 2020 compared to their CZK 46,841 average monthly salary from last year.

According to the Czech Statistics Agency, 2019 was the first year since 2012, when the number of nurses serving in acute inpatient care increased to more than 48,000. The number of doctors has also increased by about two percent.

However, trade unions are critical of the significant difference between the salaries of medical practitioners at state hospitals and the contractual wages in city, regional and private hospitals, with public nurses earning up CZK 7,000 more than their counterparts.  Instead, a uniform salary table should be put in place for all health professionals, say the unions.