As part of the medical reform in Ukraine during 2016–2020, nursing care was deregulated. Nurse workload standards were abolished, and new funding rules were introduced for state-owned and municipal healthcare institutions. As a result, the work of mid-level and junior medical staff became "invisible" to the system, leading to the exploitation of nurses and, consequently, their exit from the profession. The rapid reduction in nursing staff in Ukraine, especially against the backdrop of the full-scale war, has been noted by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine (MoH). In recent years, the MoH has also been attempting to restore work load standards for medical staff.
At the time of publication, we have not received a response from the Ministry on whether trade unions of medical workers and the nurses' NGO Medical Movement "Be Like We Are" (formerly "Be Like Nina") (MedRukh), which has opposed deregulation since 2019, were allowed to participate in this process. The aim of this study, based on 48 interviews with nurses from different regions of Ukraine, was to show how the deregulation of nursing care affects nurses' work, personal lives, and their ability to protect their rights, as well as how they want to improve the situation. Activists from MedRukh were directly involved in planning and conducting this study, making it a case of activist research.
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