1,240 posts vacant in Bucharest hospitals, recruitment at a standstill

Hospitals under the authority of Bucharest City Hall are facing a significant staffing shortage. According to data provided by the Bucharest Hospitals and Medical Services Administration (ASSMB) at the request of News.ro, the 19 medical units coordinated by the institution require a total of 1,240 employees to fill vacant and temporarily vacant posts. The problem is that these posts cannot currently be opened for competition, due to the existing freeze on recruitment across the healthcare system.

Why the competitions cannot be organised

Hospitals under the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Development can request Government approval through the Ministry of Health via a memorandum for the posts they need. Recruitment competitions can only be launched once this approval has been obtained.

ASSMB requested clarification from the Ministry of Development, Public Works and Administration regarding how to apply the provisions of Law no. 141/2025, which regulates certain fiscal and budgetary measures. The institution received a response stating that responsibility for initiating the memorandum lies with the Ministry of Health.

"Following correspondence between the Bucharest Hospitals and Medical Services Administration (ASSMB) and the Ministry of Development, Public Works and Administration (MDLPA) regarding the application of the provisions of Article XXII, paragraph (14) of Law no. 141/2025 on certain fiscal and budgetary measures, ASSMB was officially informed that the legal entity responsible for initiating the drafting of the Memorandum under the aforementioned normative act is the Ministry of Health," the institution stated.

Subsequently, ASSMB consolidated data received from all 19 hospitals under its management, and in April 2026 forwarded the supporting documentation to the Ministry of Health via the Bucharest Public Health Directorate. The purpose of this initiative is to fill vacant and temporarily vacant posts in compliance with staffing standards and within the approved budget.

1,240 posts awaiting unblocking

"The final consolidated figures indicate a need to open a total of 1,240 posts to competition across the 19 hospitals," ASSMB representatives stated. The majority of posts are for nurses and auxiliary medical staff, though doctors, medical registrars, statisticians, administrative staff, workers, and support personnel are also needed.

Breakdown by staff category

• Doctors: 171 posts requested (152 vacant, 19 temporarily vacant)
• Nurses (regardless of level of education): 442 posts (406 vacant, 36 temporarily vacant)
• Other specialist medical and healthcare staff with higher education (pharmacists, biologists, biochemists, physicists): 34 posts (31 vacant, 3 temporarily vacant)
• Research staff: 34 posts, all vacant
• Auxiliary medical staff (porters, nursing auxiliaries): 357 posts (353 vacant, 4 temporarily vacant)
• Other staff with secondary education (medical registrars, medical statisticians): 73 posts (70 vacant, 3 temporarily vacant)
• Administrative, technical, economic staff, workers and support personnel: 129 posts (126 vacant, 3 temporarily vacant)

Next steps

At present, hospitals cannot organise recruitment competitions until the posts are unblocked through the requisite legal procedure. The documentation has already been submitted to the Ministry of Health, and the next step is the initiation of the memorandum, which must be forwarded to the Government for approval. ASSMB emphasises that the request concerns filling the posts required across the 19 hospitals, in compliance with staffing norms and the approved budget.