There has been a “breakthrough” in talks between the nurses union and the health ministry on the new collective agreement for nurses, although more discussions are planned. Health Minister Chris Fearne said on Twitter that he had had a “productive meeting” with the Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses and that the two sides had registered “very good progress”. MUMN president Paul Pace confirmed this when contacted, saying there had been a “breakthrough on major issues” that had stalled an earlier agreement. "There has been a breakthrough on major issues but talks are still under way and there is no agreement yet. We have other meetings planned," he said. Little detail Both Pace and Fearne were reluctant to give any detail on what issues had been ironed out. One of the biggest stumbling blocks was the government’s insistence on the introduction of a palm reader for nurses to record attendance, the reintroduction of the robotic system for the distribution of medication and the digitalisation of processes. Pace would not confirm whether the palm reader issue had been solved but confirmed that the government had increased the budget for the financial package. He had previously said...
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