"Next year we will at last be able to offer training for nurses with remuneration for trainees and without fees," said Federal Minister for Family Affairs, Franziska Giffey. With her cabinet colleagues Jens Spahn and Hubertus Heil, she was launching the new campaign to encourage more people to take up a career in nursing over the period 2019 to 2023.

To date the 40 partners involved in the Concerted Action for Nursing campaign ("Konzertierte Aktion Pflege") have elaborated 111 specific measures designed to improve initial and further nursing training. To prevent trainees dropping out, for instance, the Federal Employment Agency is providing assistance. Advisory teams will be visiting schools to tell students about the new nursing training, announced Franziska Giffey.

The three ministers intend to attract young people to the profession with a new information drive and an award for the trainees achieving the best final results.

Nursing – a career with a future

Nursing is a career with a future and one of the branches that employs the most people in Germany. More than two million professionals are already caring for 3.3 million patients. In future the number of people in need of care is set to rise significantly. It is estimated that by 2030 around four million people will depend on nursing care, and that this figure will rise to over five million by 2050.

Currently 26 qualified applicants exist for every 100 vacancies. 38,000 vacancies are registered with the Federal Employment Agency alone. Although the numbers of people training as nurses has risen over the last three years, more are needed, stressed Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn. It is important that parents can advise their children to train as nurses with a good conscience, because they know that the working conditions in the profession are good. The Concerted Action for Nursing campaign is working on this. Stakeholders aim to have concrete results by summer.

Nursing auxiliaries to be upgraded

Federal Labour Minister Hubertus Heil announced that 5,000 places on retraining courses will also be made available to upgrade nursing auxiliaries to skilled nursing staff.

13,000 additional jobs in geriatric nursing will be financed under the terms of the immediate action for nursing programme, said Jens Spahn, as well as more nursing posts in hospitals. It is difficult to fill these vacancies, he explained, so people returning to the profession will also be very welcome. Since the start of this year employers have also been able to use the new Upgrading Opportunities Act (Qualifizierungschancengesetz), under the provisions of which employers releasing staff to undertake advanced training or upgrading qualify for wage subsidies.