[Nursing Division on the current intensive care situation in Germany : Working group of the Nursing Division of the German Society of Medical Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine (DGIIN)].

The year 2020 is the year of care on the occasion of the 200th birthday of Florence Nightingale. However, due to current events, the "Year of Corona" will be remembered more. A positive aspect is the attention and appreciation of the nursing profession in the population. Nevertheless, politicians and various professional groups in the hospital limit nursing care almost exclusively to practical activities that are directly necessary for the patients. A clearly noticeable improvement in working conditions for nurses as a result of the political efforts of this legislative period has so far failed to materialise to the same extent as the active involvement of nurses in political decisions and resolutions that directly affect the professional group. The rapid build-up of bed capacities has made it possible to provide the patients concerned with the necessary intensive medical care. In many places, however, this has been at the expense of the nurses and physicians, some of whom have had to work without the necessary training, with insufficient protective equipment and in unfamiliar areas. These problems continue to exist even after months of the covid-19 crisis.The Nursing Section of the DGIIN expressly declares its willingness to actively and constructively participate in any processes in the future and, with the following 5 points, offers initial practical assistance to improve the situation in German intensive care units.