‘Nurses to get substantial allowance, stipend raise’

Islamabad: State Minister for Health Services and regulations Dr Zafar Mirza has promised the nurses of Islamabad’s government hospitals a substantial increase in allowances and stipends from the next financial year and an early formulation of a service structure.

The promise was made during his meeting with members of the Federal Nurses Joint Action Committee.

The visitors apprised the minister of their community’s problems and sought their early resolution. They complained that despite facing high cost of living in the federal capital, their community members got mess and kit allowances far less than their contemporaries in provinces, who also got a nursing allowance, while meager stipend was paid to the nursing students of Islamabad compared to those in provinces.

The committee members also regretted the ‘denial’ of promotion to senior nurses in the capital, misery of nurses for being overburdened with work, the absence the nursing adviser’s post at the federal level, limited seats for admission to the local nursing schools, and long delay in the regularisation of the nurses working for years on contractual basis.

They demanded of the minister to ensure correctives measures are without delay to the relief of the federal nursing community.

Promising the early resolution of those issues, the minister told visitors that the shortage of nurses in federal hospitals would be dealt with on an emergency basis. He said kit allowance of nurses would be increased from Rs500 to Rs8,000 from July 1, while the student nurses’ stipend would go up from Rs6,860 to Rs15,880 the same month.

The minister said the ministry would ensure the speedy process to promote nurses while a comprehensive service structure would be approved for nurses on a priority basis.

The committee members thanked Dr Zafar and all concerned for promising to address their problems.