The National Union of Nurses and Midwives warns of escalating protest action if the Health Ministry fails to react to their grievances.

Talks between health minister Ewa Kopacz and representatives of the Nurses and Midwives Union  wound up this morning with no solution to a two week-long protest. The ministry is accused of neglecting the situation of health workers, claiming there is no money for demanded wage increases.

The leader of the Nurses and Midwives Union Dorota Gardas told Polskie Radio that the ministry is blind to how serious the situation is in Poland’s hospitals.

“There are no norms, no effective control over funds and no wage increases. Nurses are becoming an extinct profession with the average age of a Polish nurse at around 45 years old. The health ministry creates no incentives for young people to undertake education in this profession,” Gardas complained bitterly.

For two weeks now, nurses in the southeast region of Poland have been on strike. If the health ministry does not satisfy union demands, the protest may take on a nationwide strike, they say. (ab/pg)