Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky discussed the possibility of increasing salaries for doctors, nurses and hospital attendants who work in the secondary care facilities (provide specialized medical care), from Sept. 1, 2020, until a new payroll system within the medical reform is launched in 2021. The presidential press service reported this on June 17.
At a traditional conference call on prevention of coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, Zelensky noted that now the salary of second-level doctors in Ukraine is one of the lowest, “which is unacceptable for a civilized country, especially amid a complicated epidemic situation”.
“The medical reform did not work for second-level doctors. Their salaries are scanty. Until a new payroll system works in 2021, we will implement an interim solution, and the salaries of our doctors, I am not afraid to say, our heroes today, will increase from September. From the figures provided by the government, I see that we can significantly increase salaries,” Zelensky said.
The officials presented the figures that they prepared for the meeting according to the president’s instructions. There is the possibility to allocate more than Hr 2 billion per month to increase salaries. This will provide an increase in payments to the second-level doctors to 70% of their tariff rate, to nurses and hospital attendants by 50% and 25%, respectively, of the minimum national living wage.
“Today the tariff rate of a surgeon is Hr 5,087. With premiums, the average salary is about Hr 7 thousand. After the increase from September, it will be about Hr 10,500. This will somehow bring the salaries of second-level doctors to the salaries of family doctors. We are the only who should take care of our doctors. I hope that next year the solution will be even more effective,” Zelensky said.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko and Health Minister Maksym Stepanov said that in the case of an agreed increase formula, the average salary of paramedical personnel will increase to more than Hr 7,000, and nursing personnel will be amounted to almost Hr 6,000.
“We are proud of the specialists working in our medicine. In the conditions of outdated hospitals, equipment, very low salaries, they heroically save the lives of Ukrainian people. The Ukrainian government should take care of our qualified personnel, so that they will be motivated and not go abroad. Increasing salaries is the best way to show that we value them,” Zelensky said.
