Tuesday, April 21, 2026

Headlines

health care

In Jelgava, concern about the harmful activities of Muciņš, the hospital director appointed without a competition

Among the medical staff of Jelgava City Hospital, concerns are growing about the actions of the temporarily appointed, non-competitively selected hospital director Rinalds Muciņš, which may significantly worsen the availability of hospital services for the residents of Jelgava and the surrounding region; moreover, his management style and methods are already undermining the team spirit and motivation of the medical staff. The conflict between the hospital’s management and the medical personnel has been simmering for quite a while […]

Latvia’s budget expenditures for sick leave are five times higher than Lithuania’s and 90 million higher than Estonia’s

Latvia spends 350 million euros per year on paying employees’ sick leave, while Lithuania uses only 70 million euros per year for this purpose, despite the fact that Lithuania has 40% more inhabitants, according to information compiled by LDDK. Such a huge difference arises due to the sick leave payment model. Thus, in Latvia the employee pays for their own first sick day, then 75% […]

SRS data show that dental prosthetists earn less than nurses

A dental prosthetist is one of the lowest-paid professions in dentistry; prosthetists often earn less than their assistants, dental technicians, or nurses. Such an absurd conclusion could be drawn when looking at the State Revenue Service (VID) data on average hourly rates in dentistry. Experts, however, say that the shadow economy in this segment is to blame, as it has been very high for 30 years already. A little more […]