Italy faces nursing and emergency medicine staffing shortfalls

A Eurispes study cited by Ugl Salute highlights a deep nursing shortage in Italy, with only 6.9 nurses per 1,000 residents compared with the EU average of 8.9. Low salaries, an ageing workforce and high emigration rates have left the National Health Service unable to attract and retain staff, despite calls for more training places.

Research by the Irccs Ca’ Granda and Mario Negri institutes disputes a “vocational crisis” in emergency medicine, showing that the real issue is an oversupply of specialist training slots relative to graduating doctors. Slots grew from 391 in 2019 to 954 for 2025, while the proportion of filled positions fell from 90% to 25% in 2024, rising slightly to 47% in 2025. Italy’s share of advertised slots exceeds that of France, the UK and Spain, despite comparable satisfaction levels among trainees. Both reports call for better workforce planning and improved working conditions rather than simply increasing training numbers.