Nurses meet with Minister

About 160 South African nurses in London recently met with the South African Minister of Health, Tshabala-Msimang, at South Africa House to air their grievances. The nurses want to return to South Africa but are not happy about the health sector conditions there, especially salaries. The meeting was at the invitation of the Association of South African Nurses in Britain. The Minister was told that between 1998 and 2001 about 3 800 South African nurses were registered with the British Medical Council. Mmapula Tladi-Small, the association's director, said that returning nurses battled to find work in the public health sector, although the private sector was more open to them.