This is one of the levers recommended by the “flash mission” of the emergency physician and now Minister of Health François Braun: better remunerate the night work of hospital workers, in the hope of retaining them. This summer, the increases paid to night nursing teams will be doubled, and the rates for doctors’ call duty will be increased by 50%. For what effects?
According to Thierry Amouroux, spokesperson for the National Union of Nursing Staff (SNPI), the answer is clear: “Absolutely none. Today, the night hour for a paramedic is paid €1.07 gross. Multiplied by two, that makes €2.14 gross per hour. Nurses will therefore be paid €18 net per night, instead of €9 today. It doesn’t change the face of the world.” castigates the trade unionist, recalling that the profession remains paid 10% less than the European average.
Poor quality of life at work
Less categorical, Dr. Caroline Brémaud, head of emergencies at Laval hospital (Mayenne), sees it as a measure capable of arousing envy. “Today, a doctor is paid €250 for a 12-hour night call, we can’t say that it’s very motivating… After upgrading, it will be €375. » But the drag might only be short-lived. “It is not one-off bonuses that will keep carers. They will take what there is to take, then leave where they will find better remuneration and, above all, a better quality of professional life,” says the emergency doctor.
Because the main problem of emergencies and of the entire public hospital is that of working conditions. “We lack beds, doctors, paramedics… We need to recruit more, but for that, we have to make people want to come up with lasting measures. We are in a vicious circle. » In the meantime, the head of department is forced to call on costly temporary workers to fill the schedules. “In principle, a substitute is paid €600 for night duty, but at the moment it’s much more”, says the doctor.
“Loss of meaning”
Replacements that are also popular with paramedics. “They have become pawns, denounces Thierry Amouroux. One day they are in the morning, the next in the afternoon, the next in the night. They are changed from one day to the next, without taking into account their skills. » A “professional insecurity” which is combined with a loss of meaning. “They no longer have the time to do what is the heart of their job: supporting the patient, his therapeutic education. So when they have the possibility of doing a replacement in a hospital and a service that they have chosen, and at the times that they have decided, of course, they go there. »
According to the SNPI, 60,000 nursing positions are vacant at the public hospital. “At the same time, we know that 180,000 nurses of working age have stopped practicing. It would be enough to convince a third of them to solve the problem, calculates Thierry Amouroux. But for that, we will have to offer them better…”
The increases, along with other measures planned by the government to help the public hospital weather the summer, are expected to be published in the Official newspaper day to day and will be effective for a period of three months. “Their impact on French people’s access to care will be precisely measured and evaluated throughout the period, before considering, if necessary, their sustainability or their generalization”, says the Ministry of Health.