$200 million recruitment drive for nursing services

Public hospitals are to receive an extra $200 million to go towards recruiting additional nurses in 2011-12.

The extra funding has been allocated to counteract the increasing staff turnover in public hospitals and rising demand for hospital services. It will be spent on measures to retain, as well as recruit, more nurses.

The Hospital Authority (HA) is aiming to recruit 1,600 extra nurses; some of which will be expected to train nurse graduates. It will also support the 23 training and development schemes for different specialties offered by the Institute of Advanced Nursing Studies, and purchase an extra 1,700 electric beds.

The HA is consulting with frontline nurses on the proposed changes.