Sofia Municipality sounds the alarm: 78 nursery groups are at risk of closure, changes in the work model are needed

The Sofia Municipality has sent another letter to the ministries of education and health, as well as to the chairmen of the relevant committees in the National Assembly, insisting on the legislative change in the work model in nursery groups. The proposal is that the care of children up to 3 years old be taken over by a team of different specialists, with nurses focusing on medical care and monitoring. The model is supported by the three leading organizations, the Bulgarian Medical Union, the Sofia Medical College and the Bulgarian Pediatric Association.
The reasons are both the critical shortage of nurses and the legislative restriction that each nursery group must have a minimum of 2, as well as the need to introduce a comprehensive model for the education and care of children from 0 to 7 years old. There are 260 nursery groups in Sofia, for which 520 nurses are needed. Currently, 364 are working in them. Under these conditions, 78 groups are at risk of closure, and 1,716 already accepted children may be left without a place to care.
“The Sofia Municipality has repeatedly presented to state institutions the need to change the nursery care model. Our proposals were initiated by those working in the system - the directors of 202 kindergartens, employer organizations, universities. This gives us confidence that our proposals are not only applicable, but also necessary. The topic has been discussed with five successive governments, but so far the necessary political will for change has clearly not been found. Meanwhile, the crisis with medical personnel is deepening. 375 out of 713 nurses in kindergartens are over 62 years old, which is more than 52% of all specialists. Only 35 are under 35 years old, says the Deputy Mayor of the Sofia Municipality for “Education, Sports and Youth Activities” Desislava Zhelyazkova.
However, the shortage of nurses is not only a problem in nurseries. It is systemic for the entire education system - in 57 kindergartens there is a complete lack, or in one of the shifts, of a nurse in the office, and there, of course, she is most needed. There is also a huge shortage in schools. The health system - hospitals, polyclinics and other health structures, is also experiencing a huge shortage of medical specialists. Therefore, the solution cannot be simply to require more nurses for each nursery group, without taking into account the actual staff resources. It is necessary for the different specialists to have clear roles and responsibilities, and medical care for the children is guaranteed.
At the same time, the current rules do not allow the missing nurses to be compensated with other specialists. The Ministry of Health points out that a pedagogical specialist who has undergone training in caring for children up to 3 years old does not acquire a medical qualification and cannot replace a nurse.
At this stage, the decision of the Sofia Municipality, although risky, is not to close the nursery groups. The Municipality will take the necessary steps to ensure that they continue to work and that the children admitted remain in the system. However, this cannot be a permanent solution. If the regulatory requirements remain unchanged, with the current shortage, the risk of closing 78 groups remains.
Medical organizations support the change in the model
The Bulgarian Medical Union, the Sofia Medical College and the Bulgarian Pediatric Association support the idea that the care of the youngest children should be organized by various specialists. According to their opinions, the daily activities of the development and upbringing of children can be taken over by pedagogues and specialists in early childhood development, while the nurse retains her role in medical monitoring, prevention and health care.
A similar approach is also used in a number of European early childhood care systems. Analyses by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development show that in other European countries, the care of the youngest is organized by teams of specialists with different qualifications and complementary roles.
The proposal of the Sofia Municipality is to create precisely such a multidisciplinary model of work. This will allow each specialist to take on the activities for which they have the necessary training, without questioning the medical care of the children.
Another part of the proposal is that nurseries and nursery groups will move to the system of the Ministry of Education and Science. Thus, care for children up to 7 years of age can be organized as a single system.
Sofia Municipality insists on an urgent meeting with the Minister of Health and a clear signal from the government that the necessary changes to the Health Act, the Preschool and School Education Act and Regulation No. 26 are also on their agenda.
The current decision is for Sofia not to close groups. However, a sustainable solution requires a change at the national level in the way daycare is organized. It must simultaneously guarantee a place for every child admitted, quality care and realistic requirements for the system.