Byadmin30 scarce professions in Poland in 2022: doctors and other health workers
The latest report “Barometer of Professions – 2022” has been prepared at the request of the Minister for Family Affairs and Social Policy to the Voivodeship Labor Office in Krakow. This is the seventh edition of the study. In general, the report considers 168 professions: 138 of them are balanced, which means those areas where the demand for specialists roughly corresponds to the supply in the labor market, and 30 are in short supply.
“A scarce profession is one in which there are more job offers than candidates. In this case, candidates should have no difficulty in finding employment, because the demand from employers will be large, and the supply of workers with appropriate qualifications will be small.” – the authors of the study indicate.
According to the report, in 2022, 30 professions were classified as scarce, which is one more than in the previous report. New professions on the list of scarce ones are psychologists and psychotherapists, who were in the list of balanced professions in previous years.
Experts also point out that on a national scale, the greatest labor shortages will be in the construction and healthcare sectors. In the field of “Medicine and Nursing”, there is a shortage of personnel in the following professions:
- physiotherapists and massage therapists
- doctors
- caregivers of an elderly person or a person with a disability
- nurses and midwives (in constant shortage)
- medical rescuers
- psychologists and psychotherapists (in short supply since 2022)
“The greatest problems with finding employees are observed in small towns, rural areas, and places where new hospitals or departments are being built. The shortage of nurses and midwives is especially acute in 347 districts, and doctors – in 317.” – indicate the authors of the Barometer.
It should be noted that the report analyzes the situation in the country in the context of voivodships and districts (powiats). Judging by the infographics, the most difficult situation with a shortage of doctors is in the Wielkopolska Voivodship. The hospital administration is trying to solve personnel problems, including foreigners.
The situation is not better in the Opolskie Voivodship. Many doctors have retired or gone abroad. Hospital management complains about the lack of continuity between generations of doctors.
Recently, the hospital in Opole has appealed to doctors through social networks with a call to help the department of medical care at night and on holidays (NPL – Nocna Pomoc Lekarska). Such departments operate in many hospitals and serve as family medicine outpatient clinics when the family doctor is not working, that is, after 6 pm and before 7 am, as well as on weekends and holidays.
Doctors receive about PLN 100 per hour for such work. However, there are not so many applicants. In most Polish hospitals, a doctor can easily take duty in such a department, regardless of his specialization. Usually, such shifts are taken by doctors who want to earn money.
Disturbing news came from the Pomeranian Voivodship. “An insufficient number of doctors in the labor market and the coronavirus pandemic have led to a reduction in the activities of the emergency department at the hospital in Wejherowo. We are currently unable to provide relevant staff to serve our patients.” – informs the institution on its page.
And in Zielona Góra, they decided in a very original way to compensate for the lack of ambulance doctors. In ambulances, they decided to replace doctors with a “Digital Doctor”. No, this is not about artificial intelligence. It is rather a form of advanced teleconsultation, but in a situation where the patient is fighting for his life.
The pilot project “Digital Doctor” was launched a few months ago in the emergency department in Gorzów Wielkopolski. Now the Lubuskie Voivodship has decided to allocate a million PLN so that the Digital Doctor can start working in Zielona Góra as well.
This list can be continued, but it is clear that the situation with doctors in Poland is quite difficult. On the one hand, it is bad for patients. Doctors are not available, and queues for specialists are increasing. For example, a planned visit to an endocrinologist can be expected for six months or more.
On the other hand, for our doctors, this is a good opportunity to continue their professional activities in Poland, because in the coming years the shortage of doctors in Poland will only increase.
