Study confirms Cyprus nursing shortage, with deficit set to persist

Local healthnursesparliamentSHSOTop News Study confirms Cyprus nursing shortage, with deficit set to persist Nurse To Stand Trial For Indecent Assault At Health Centre Relevant News Study confirms Cyprus nursing shortage, with deficit set to persist 4 August 2026 Things to do on Tuesday, August 4 4 August 2026 Mostly clear skies with highs of 39 degrees on Tuesday 4 August 2026 Marilena Panayi 4 August 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber A study commissioned by the Health Ministry has confirmed a shortage of nurses in Cyprus, without even factoring in the needs created by two significant pieces of health legislation covering palliative care and home nursing care for chronic, bedridden and elderly patients. The study, carried out by Professor Yiannis Yfantopoulos on behalf of the Health Ministry, is now in the hands of MPs. It puts the current shortfall at 586 nurses, with a deficit of 411 projected for 2030. According to the report, Cyprus had 6,272 nurses available in 2025, the year the study began, against expected demand of 6,858, a deficit of 586. By 2030, the study projects 7,158 nurses available against needs of 7,569, narrowing the deficit to 411. The balance is expected to turn positive from 2035, when 8,263 nurses are projected to be available against needs of 7,818, with the same trend continuing to 2055, when, if the study’s findings hold, Cyprus would have a surplus of 2,678 nurses. The report, submitted to the Health Ministry in two stages, initially calculated needs based on new hospitals that had secured an operating licence at the time the study began, new hospitals with a founding licence but not yet an operating licence, and the current needs of state structures such as hospitals and health centres. On that basis, the deficit stood at 369 nurses for 2025 and 187 for 2030. A second stage then added the needs arising from the law on the operation of rehabilitation centres and from reinforced staffing at state structures, following consultation between the SHSO and unions. Under this second calculation, the deficit rose to 586 nurses for the 2025-2030 period and 411 for 2030-2035. Even the 586 figure understates the true gap, the report notes, since it still excludes the needs generated by the law on community nursing, which is mostly delivered by nurses, and by palliative care, which requires the involvement of large numbers of nursing staff. Below the EU average Citing Eurostat data, Yfantopoulos said Cyprus has historically lagged behind the European average in nursing staff adequacy. A comparative assessment of nurses per 100,000 population, using Eurostat’s 2023 study adjusted to include 2025 estimates for Cyprus, found the country has a comparatively low concentration of general nursing staff relative to its population, though it fares better when it comes to midwives. The report also raises concern over how medical staff are distributed between sectors, noting that doctors are mainly employed in the private sector while nurses are concentrated in the public sector. The split between public and private nursing staff remains unequal, though it has shown a mild convergence trend between 2021 and 2025: the public and broader public sector accounts for 60%-67%, against 33%-40% in the private sector. Cyprus has 5.3 nurses per 1,000 residents, compared with an EU average of 8.5, the report states. Finland, Germany and Ireland each have around 12 nurses per 1,000 residents, meaning Cyprus has roughly 29% fewer nurses than those countries. The study’s general conclusions state that a long-term balance between nursing supply and demand in Cyprus is achievable, but stresses that “the problem is not only quantitative but also qualitative,” involving the distribution of skills, an ageing workforce and the effectiveness of the system’s governance. What the Greek expert recommends In his recommendations to the Health Ministry, Yfantopoulos stresses that no single measure can work on its own, and that a series of actions is needed, including proper monitoring and tracking of data. Among his suggestions: boosting the supply of nurses through more training places, scholarships and financial incentives, and strengthening educational infrastructure retaining existing staff through better pay, improved working conditions and reduced burnout attracting nurses from abroad and effectively managing staff inflows and outflows upgrading skills through advanced nursing roles, expanded responsibilities and greater use of specialisation improving governance and technology through systematic monitoring, digital tools, telehealth and electronic support systems “No single intervention is sufficient,” he said. “A combination of measures is required, tailored to Cyprus’s particularities.” “Inaction is not a choice” Concluding his report, Yfantopoulos said an assessment of the risk of non-intervention shows that inaction is not a neutral choice. In an environment where demand is becoming more complex, he said, failing to adapt leads to a gradual deterioration in functional capacity, increased pressure on quality and safety, a redistribution of burdens across levels and sectors, and a shift toward crisis management rather than planning. The risk, he said, is not only about numbers but about the system’s ability to function predictably, fairly and consistently. He said nursing workforce planning in Cyprus should be seen as a governance mechanism for the health system’s capacity, adding that the shift from diagnosis to governance is the point where recognised pressures become targeted, time-phased choices that can be implemented, monitored and adjusted, so the country can maintain its functional capacity against predictable but powerful shifts in demand. 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