health

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Nurses call for an increase in the number of medical staff

About 1,000 nurses and hospital caregivers dressed in white coats marched in demonstration through a Tokyo shopping district on November 18, calling for an increase in the number of nurses and the suspension of measures to force patients to pay more for medical services.

Prior to the march, they held a rally at Hibiya Amphitheater.

Citing a nurse's grievance, "I am so busy that if I continue to work as a nurse, I may cause a medical accident or die from overwork," Tanaka Chieko (President, Japan Federation of Medical Worker's Unions) called on participants to have the voices of medical workers heard by the public in order to rouse public opinion.

A 23-year-old nurse of a private hospital complained, "It's fun and challenging, but I'm too busy to provide proper care to patients. Almost everyday, I must work three hours overtime without pay."

A passer-by said, "I didn't know that there is a shortage of nurses, despite the present difficulty of finding work. It must be a tough job because they quit their careers because of the strain of hard work, don' they? I want the number of nurses to be increased for patients."

This action was co-organized and supported by seven medical-related organizations, including the Japan Federation of Medical Worker's Unions and the Central Council for Promotion of Social Security. -- Akahata, November 19, 2005