Attrition rates for both local and foreign nurses in public hospitals had hit a five-year high in 2021, with a rate of 7.4 per cent and 14.8 per cent respectively.
Many have complained about the dismal state of public hospitals such that they are often overworked.
In parliament, Nee Soon GRC MP Louis Ng raised this issue, asking the Health Ministry what is being done to ensure nurses have enough rest.
A lot of nurses are sharing they sometimes end the shift at 9pm or 10pm, and then they are back at work at 7am. And that really is insufficient rest for many of them.”
Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Health Rahayu Mahzam said that measures are being rolled out to deal with the matter.
She highlighted the internal cross-cluster Staff Well-being Committee, which was formed in 2019 for healthcare clusters to share best practices with each other and provide feedback to MOH on how staff well-being could be improved.
Ms Rahayu added that several measures have already been taken with the easing of the Covid-19 pandemic, such as nurses given more time off and foreign nurses to return home to spend time with their loved ones.
Ms Rahayu said that MOH and public healthcare clusters have always been concerned about the well-being of nurses and other staff groups.
