Welcome to the College of Nurses Aotearoa News Update.
No. 324 16 November 2016
National news
Feilding nursing student heading to global awards in Ireland
A Feilding nursing student from Massey University is heading to Ireland as an honoured winner in the annual international undergraduates awards.
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Half a million Kiwis not receiving healthcare because of cost
One in nine Kiwis are not getting the GP care they need because they cannot afford it, Ministry of Health survey figures show.
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New adult asthma guidelines launched after 15 years
The Asthma and Respiratory Foundation NZ is proud to announce the new Adult Asthma Guidelines will be launched on Friday 25 November 2016 at the New Zealand Respiratory Conference in Auckland.
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Junior doctors v district health boards: why can't they agree?
The fight for safer hours is one that affects every single one of us. But why won't either side back down, asks Rachel Thomas?
Take a 30-year-old recipe, mix in 3700 doctors, 264 salary grades, add a dash of sleep deprivation, sprinkle it across the length of the country, and you have one helluva tasty workplace dispute.
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Aged care
Housing crisis will consign seniors to a more lonely lifestyle, scholar warns
The housing crisis, left unchecked, will collide with the country's ageing population to create unprecedented social dislocation in years ahead, a professor of public health says.
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Funding shortfall for NZ's elder abuse sector putting people at risk
A serious shortfall in funding to address elder abuse in New Zealand needs to be fixed immediately, says the boss of Age Concern.
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Cancer issues
NZ 'on the verge of a melanoma epidemic'
With already the highest incidence rate in the world it is predicted numbers could increase by 50% in the next two decades, particularly in older adults.
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DHBs
Canterbury DHB boss slates Treasury report
A leaked Treasury report revealing serious concerns about Canterbury District Health Board's (CDHBs) financial management has been roundly slated by chief executive David Meates
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Treasury flags concerns over downturn in DHB finances
A leaked Treasury report warns the financial performance of district health boards has deteriorated severely over the past two years, and flags eight regions where there are serious concerns over services.
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Diabetes
How just one can of fizzy drink a day raises the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 50pc
Drinking just one can of fizzy drink every day could have deadly consequences, scientists warn.
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Niki Bezzant: The diabetes burden
House prices in New Zealand have more than doubled in the past 10 years. Many of us are probably pretty happy about that.
But something else that has doubled in the past decade will affect a lot of us, and in less enriching ways.
It's diabetes.
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Mental health
Mental health sector in need of Pasifika staff
A consumer consultant says New Zealand's mental health sector should customise its approach to Pasifika people suffering from mental distress.
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Mental health help wait times for youth patients 'appalling'
New data showing an increase in long wait times for youth patients needing mental health help has been labelled "appalling" by a local suicide prevention expert
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Patient safety
Report shows rise in ophthalmology events
Figures in the latest Learning from adverse events report show a notable increase in ophthalmology[1] events reported in 2015–16.
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Falls prevention efforts reducing harm in our health system
Falls prevention efforts are being praised for a 25 percent reduction in the number of Serious and Adverse Events (SAEs) reported in Canterbury this last financial year.
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ACC says almost $700m over 10 years for medical treatment injuries just tip of iceberg
The ACC has forked out close to $675 million in the last decade for patients injured after botched medical treatments, misdiagnosis, post-surgery infections and reactions to medications.
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Clinical errors cause most patient harm in hospitals
Clinical management problems have overtaken falls as the most frequently reported cause of patient harm in public hospitals.
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Public health
Rheumatic fever rates fail to fall in central Auckland, Waitemata
The Government is reshuffling money to bolster its rheumatic fever prevention programme throughout much of greater Auckland after officials admitted targets are not being met.
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$875,000 injected into Auckland health boards to combat high rheumatic fever rates
Health organisations are welcoming news of an $875,000 injection into Auckland DHBs to combat stubbornly high rheumatic fever rates - except one who says more should be done.
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Housing crisis blamed for Auckland's rheumatic fever rates
The government is failing to make a dent in rheumatic fever rates across much of Auckland, despite millions of dollars being poured into tackling the problem.
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International news
Hoping to Help: Improving Short-Term Medical Missions
Nurse midwives and their students are among the hundreds of thousands of people from wealthy parts of the world who travel abroad every year to participate in short-term programs intended to improve the health and well-being of people in poor countries. Considering the horrific toll of maternal and infant mortality in so many countries, the potential for improving health and quality of life draws students and professionals who want to alleviate suffering as well as learn about the world.
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Nurses could be asked to sign fit notes for patients
The duty of signing fit notes for work may be extended to primary care staff other than GPs, the government has said.
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1.2 Million More Nurses Needed by 2030 to Meet U.S. Demand
The numbers are startling. Even though there are more than 2.7 million registered nurses in the workforce, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there’s a looming shortage. Demand for health care is growing much faster than the country’s supply of nurses, making it one of the best jobs of the future. Even so, according to a recent report by Rasmussen College, the country will need 1.2 million more nurses by 2030.
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Getting doctors and nurses to work together at patient bedsides
HERSHEY, Pa. — The structure of health care systems helps determine how doctors and nurses collaborate during hospital rounds, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers. A greater understanding of such team-based treatment in hospitals could help improve patient care.
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Workplace
Assertiveness
Working WITH People, Not Against Them
Do you consider yourself to be assertive? And what does being assertive mean to you? Does it mean exercising your rights all the time, every time? Or does it mean knowing when to let someone else or some other cause or outcome take precedence over your rights?
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Wellbeing
Eight techniques for coping emotionally after an earthquake
Whether that was your first earthquake or you seven thousandth, there's likely a lot of shock running through your system right now.
Earthquake stress is something New Zealanders know well, but that doesn't mean it gets easier with experience. Some people are able to "keep calm and carry on"; others may feel they can't cope after that midnight, 7.5 magnitude wake up call.
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Articles of interest
RN workforce update: Current and long-range forecast
Nursing Management: November 2016 - Volume 47 - Issue 11 - p 20–25
Nearly 20 years ago, talk of a national RN shortage began, with projections of it reaching near-crisis proportions by 2016. Such a shortage never emerged, and at this point seems unlikely to occur in the future. What's unfolded in the American RN workforce during the past decade in terms of new entrants to the profession and changing demographics? What are the reasons for these shifts? Also, are the new predictions regarding RN supply and demand accurate? And what does this mean for nurse managers? Let's explore the issues.
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From the Ministry of Health
Cancer: New registrations and deaths 2013
This report is the latest release in the Cancer: New registrations and deaths series, which presents information about new cases of primary cancer diagnosed and reported to the New Zealand Cancer Registry. It also presents information on deaths registered in New Zealand in the same time period where cancer was recorded as the underlying cause of death. The focus of this report is on new cancer cases and deaths in 2013.
This report is accompanied by a set of interactive tables ‘Cancer trends 2013’ that provide supplementary registration and mortality data, including key facts for selected cancers and underlying data used to create graphs and maps in the report.
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Suicide Facts: Deaths and intentional self-harm hospitalisations 2013
This annual statistical publication presents suicide information received from the New Zealand Mortality Collection, and admissions to hospital for intentional self-harm sourced from the New Zealand National Minimum Dataset.
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Professional development
The above information has been collated for the College of Nurses Aotearoa (NZ) Inc by Linda Stopforth, SNIPS and is provided on a weekly basis. It is current as at Tuesday 15 November 2016
If you have any feedback about content - what parts are most useful or what you would like added - please email admin@nurse.org.nz
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