Ljubljana - The Chamber of Nursing and Midwifery said on Monday it was surprised by Health Minister Danijel Bešič Loredan's claim in a recent interview that there are no medical staff shortages in Slovenia. The chamber said its data showed health institutions were understaffed and overburdened.

Loredan said in an interview with the STA that despite popular reports about staff shortages and nurses and doctors either emigrating or leaving the profession, figures showed there was enough staff, at least in the nursing segment.

The chamber said in an open letter today that many unsuccessful calls for applications for job vacancies in public institutions confirmed that there was not enough medical staff.

It is impossible to even find replacement for the nursing and midwifery staff that is retiring, the chamber said, noting that the largest generation of nurses had started to retire and that unless systemic solutions were found, the problem would increase.

The existing standards and norms for nursing staff date back to 1984 and do not meet the present-day needs of the patients, the chamber pointed out.

It believes the actual number of required nursing staff could only be calculated after new standards and norms are adopted.

The chamber stressed that the problems of healthcare could not be successfully tackled without nursing and midwifery, so it expects to be included in the government efforts to improve the situation.