Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/580873
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 4 OCTOBER 2015 News 9 Elderly home nurses will have to speak in English or Maltese TIM DIACONO ALL nurses and carers at old peo- ple's homes will have to be able to speak in English or Maltese, ac- cording to a new set of minimum standards that all homes will have to fully adopt within the next dec- ade. Moreover, all potential staff members will have to obtain at least two written references and be in possession of a clean police conduct certificate. Volunteers will also undergo a rigorous selec- tion process that will include po- lice checks and will not be allowed to replace paid staff. All new staff members will receive induction training within six weeks of ap- pointment, as well as documented foundation training within the first six months of employment. All staff will have a minimum of three paid days training per year. All care staff members will have their own performance plan, which will map out their career development, against which a performance appraisal will be conducted on a biannual basis. Following a series of surprise in- spections last year, parliamentary secretary for the elderly Justyne Caruana flagged serious concerns about the level of care offered at old people's homes. "I was shocked at the apathy and lackadaisical attitude in many old people's homes and centres," she had told MaltaToday. A damn- ing national audit report later revealed that chronic understaff- ing and a lack of rigorous enforce- ment is leading to inadequate care for elderly residents, in clear breach of homes' contractual ob- ligations. The report claimed that the absence of national minimum requirements for homes was pro- hibiting robust enforcement of services. According to the standards – launched by Caruana earlier this week – the minimum ratio of care staff to residents will be deter- mined by the Barthel 20 index, a scale that measures people's de- pendence. On admission of a new resident and following any change in dependence of any one resident, the ratio will be altered accord- ingly. Night staff will be on duty in numbers that reflect the numbers and needs of the residents. Home managers will not be al- lowed to manage more than one home. Moreover, they must also be experienced professionals, with at least two years' prior experience in management and a diploma in management or health sciences. Current managers without such qualification have until 2019 to study for and obtain certificates. Clampdown on elderly abuse in homes In August, a St Vincent de Paul nursing aide was charged in court with slapping a dementia patient in the face. A spokesperson for the Foundation for Active Age- ing had described abuse cases in MaltaToday – including how dementia patients in a private home were made to stand in a line and held from behind as the same spoon was used to scoop food into all of their mouths. In an attempt to crack down on elderly resident abuse, the standards will also ensure that all homes establish clear complaints procedures – that includes the possibility for residents to anon- ymously whistle-blow on abusive staff. Homes will keep a record of all complaints, as well as details of investigation and action taken. Every year, homes will have to audit their accounts and come up with a development plan that details their plans to improve their residents' lives. They will carry out regular professional surveys amongst residents, the results of which will be made publicly available, and encour- age residents to form their own associations. Residents, their families and their legal representatives will be informed beforehand about planned government inspections and will be allowed to speak to inspectors, anonymously if they wish, about conditions at the home. Their views will be pub- lished in inspection reports. Homes will develop policies to their staff on how to deal with physical or verbal abuse by resi- dents, that will ensure that phys- ical intervention is only used as a last resort in accordance with the law. Union claims minimum wage can attract more nurses to vocation But university student organisations are at loggerheads over MUMN's minimum wage proposal MIRIAM DALLI THE Malta Health Students' As- sociation has rejected a budget proposal by the Malta Union for Midwives and Nurses (MUMN) targeting nursing students. In its main proposals for Budget 2016, the MUMN suggested that nursing students should be given a minimum wage – instead of a uni- versity stipend – in a bid to encour- age more students to take on a nurs- ing career. The nurses' union said minimum wage had already been granted to nursing students in the past: "Such a measure had left positive effects and should be introduced again. The minimum wage for nursing students was given in the past when there was a serious shortage of nurses." But the Malta Health Students' Association has expressed its disa- greement with the proposal, arguing that nursing and midwifery students should not be entitled to minimum wage as this gives the wrong incen- tive to students to join the course. "This incentive is not the right one since nursing requires a huge amount of dedication. Although it is evident that the need for nurses in the health care system is a pri- ority, MHSA urges the MUMN to come up with alternate ways in or- der to encourage people to join the course," the association said. "If these students are to be given a minimum wage, other health care students, who also attend clinical placements as part of their course requirements, should be entitled to the same wage." Likewise, the centre-right Stu- denti Demokristjani Malti (SDM) argued that by entitling nursing and midwifery students to a minimum wage during the time of their stud- ies, this would offer a wrong motive for students to choose these areas of study. "Healthcare is a vocational profes- sion and students shouldn't choose this area of study over others just to have such an income." But a third student organisation, the centre-left Pulse, came out in favour of the proposal and called on the government to seriously consid- er further incentives to bolster the nursing profession in Malta. "Together with medics, nurses form the bedrock of the healthcare profession in Malta. It is therefore in the general interest of society that such pivotal professions be sus- tained and supported in all forms," Pulse said. "For the past years, nursing has been a profession facing constant challenges, primarily an incessant shortage in workforce and interest. Coupled with the ever-increasing pressure on the national healthcare system, it is clear that a sustained deficit in nurses may very well lead to the crumbling of the entire framework." In its proposals, MUMN also pro- posed a grant for families who take care of their elderly at home. Speak- ing of the long lists of elderly waiting to join a residential home, MUMN said it was convinced that there would be an increase in number of families taking care of their relatives if they received proper support. "It would be a win-win situation if proper grants are given to families who take care of their relatives. The government would surely be paying less if the elderly stay at home while the same elderly would remain close to their familiar environment," the MUMN said. It called for a feasibility study for a plan that would allow families to be given proper incentives to keep independent and semi-independ- ent elderly relatives at home. This would help in alleviating the prob- lems of overcrowding in hospitals, the union added. The union also said that an addi- tional 396 parking spaces were re- quired at Mater Dei Hospital, call- ing for more car park space.