Welcome to the College of Nurses Aotearoa News Update.
No. 569, Wednesday 17 November 2021
Weekly news round-up of nursing and health information in New Zealand and internationally
New Zealand news
'Empowering patients with knowledge' plays key part in nurse's approach to healthcare
The Gisborne Herald
self-described 'talking nurse': Empowering patients with knowledge is a key component of nursing and healthcare, says Hauora Tairawhiti clinical ...
Nurse of 37 years loses career over vaccine refusal
A nurse with more than three decades experience at Marlborough’s Wairau Hospital has lost her career after refusing to comply with the vaccine mandate.
'More than 30 of my patients in body bags': NZ nurse's warning to unvaccinated - Newstalk ZB
Newstalk ZB
Māori-Frenchwoman and registered nurse Mahina Adams wants the unvaccinated in Hawke's Bay to know that Covid is not a joke and should be taken ...
Covid-19: Nurses under 'enormous' strain amid staffing shortage, Auckland situation 'dire' | Stuff.co.nz
Stuff.co.nz
Former Waikato Hospital nurse talks about working conditions in the ... The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) says staffing levels at ...
Covid-19 updates: Not enough nurses to deal with self-isolation cases - union | RNZ News
RNZ
Auckland is 1000 nurses short and lacks the capacity to handle the amount of people self-isolating at home, says NZ's largest nurses' union.
Director of Public Health Caroline McElnay pushes back on concerns hospital understaffing ...
Newshub
The New Zealand Nurses Organisation says while there might be enough beds, there isn't enough staff.
Kerri Nuku - Māori Radio Station - Waatea News
Waatea News
Cultural challenges for hospital staff as more Māori are admitted for COVID-19. Claudette Hauiti talks to New Zealand Nurses Organisation ...
Christina Couling | Nurse/ Lead Organiser for the NZ Nurses Organisation (NZNO) - Waatea News
Waatea News
Concerned for staffing levels at hospitals in Auckland
International news
Medicine is getting fresh blood. It's time to modernize admissions | Fortune
Fortune
TOPSHOT - Registered nurse Yeni Sandoval wears personal protective equipment ... large numbers of experienced doctors and nurses with fresh blood.
Nurses don't want to be hailed as 'heroes' during a pandemic - The Conversation
The Conversation
This is how one young nurse described their experience caring for COVID-19 patients without any safety guidance: “There was a palpable tenseness being ...
Covid in Scotland: 'Nursing shifts left me inconsolable' - BBC News
BBC
A nurse who worked in ICU through the pandemic has said she had to leave the profession because the pressure was now too much to bear.
Philippine: More nurses leave to seek better salary overseas - The Japan News
The Japan News
Philippine Daily Inquirer via Asia News NetworkHow ironic that the world's so-called biggest supplier of nurses may soon be facing a shortage, ...
Why the US nursing crisis is getting worse - Vox
Vox
A nurse leaning over a gurney in a hospital hallway. ... As NBC News reported last month, permanent nurses at rural hospitals make on average ...
Masters-level nurses working in McDonalds as WA hospitals scream for recruits
Sydney Morning Herald
One Nepalese nurse has been so frustrated she is considering getting registered in New Zealand and transferring that qualification to Australia.
Covid-19 vaccination to become mandatory for all nurses in England
Nursing Times
Being fully vaccinated against Covid-19 is set to become compulsory for all health and social care staff in England who have face-to-face contact ...
Why one former ICU nurse quit his job: "I was having panic attacks" - Marketplace.org
Across the country, nurses are quitting their jobs in record numbers. A September survey by the American Association of Critical Care Nurses found that two-thirds of nurses surveyed have considered leaving the field because of the pandemic.
Facing a boom without workers, Australian employers deploy bonuses, raises | RNZ News
RNZ
The government needs to vigorously recruit foreign nurses and pay New Zealand staff to return from overseas to boost ICU capacity, ...
Andhra Pradesh ‘nurses’ European dreams as Covid-19 pushes d ..
VIJAYAWADA: Owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, nurses or graduates ..
of nursing in Andhra Pradesh are now looking to capitalise on the existing demand for their profession in European countries ..
Aged care / Aging population
Taranaki rest home named best aged care small facility in the North Island
Amrinder and Indu Sodhi always wanted to work in the healthcare industry helping people, and now the couple own the best aged care small facility in the North Island.
Children and young people
Covid-19: Children aged 5 to 11 could be eligible for Pfizer vaccine early next year
Children aged 5 to 11 years could be eligible for vaccination against Covid-19 before April next year, Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says.
Covid-19
Covid-19: Education, health and disability sector to be brought under vaccine mandate from ...
Stuff.co.nz
EXPLAINER: Most of New Zealand’s health and education workforce will need to be vaccinated against Covid-19 or face losing their jobs from Monday, with workers in hospitality and close-contact businesses using vaccine certificates to be mandated for vaccination when the nation moves into the traffic light system.
Covid-19: Migrant health workers need one of four vaccines to satisfy mandate | Stuff.co.nz
Stuff.co.nz
“General practitioners, pharmacists, community health nurses, midwives, paramedics, and healthcare and disability workers in facilities where ...
Hospitals brace for influx of Covid-19 patients
Hospitals are bracing for an influx of Covid-19 patients before Christmas, but have made major gains in treating them and expect to cope with the influx, a hospital boss says.
Covid-19: Home-call service to vaccine-hesitant patients racks up $250000 bill
Stuff.co.nz
GPs and nurses have been funded to phone Māori and Pacific patients who are vaccine- · GPs and volunteers at Manurewa Marae in South Auckland have been ...
Fully vaccinated Covid-19 cases' isolation period changes to 10 days
Health officials have shortened the isolation period for Covid-19 cases who have had two vaccine doses, and their contacts.
Covid-19: Government defends home isolation scheme after three deaths
The Covid-19 home isolation system is not overwhelmed with patients, Deputy Prime Minister Grant Roberston says, despite the nurses’ union warning there could be more deaths as the scheme grows at a “rapid rate”.
Covid-19: Nearly 60 per cent of Monday's cases Māori, Ministry of Health says
Nearly 60 per cent of the Covid-19 cases reported on Monday are Māori, the Ministry of Health reported today.’
Covid-19 NZ: Booster vaccine shots available from end of this month
The Government will start handing out a booster shot of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine from November 29, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has announced.
Covid-19: Who can get the AstraZeneca vaccine and how is it different to Pfizer?
The Government will make the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine available for a small group of people, officials have announced.
New Zealand has an advance purchase a
Wellington ICU leader's modelling shows huge bed shortfall with 90 per cent vaccine rate - Stuff.co.nz
Stuff.co.nz
ICU nurses move a coronavirus patient onto their stomach. Modelling from a Wellington intensive care leaders shows a 99.9 per cent vaccination ...
Covid-19: Fears Rotorua and Taupō ICUs and ventillators not enough
Will 14 ventilators and four ICU beds be enough for a region of 116,000 people?
Covid-19: Wellington ICU leader's modelling shows huge bed shortfall with 90 per cent vaccine rate
Stuff.co.nz
ICU nurses move a coronavirus patient onto their stomach. JUSTIN MCMANUS/The Age ... Covid-19 NZ: Ashley Bloomfield's key number, explained.
Covid 19 Delta outbreak: Hospitals reach out to unvaccinated workers as deadline looms - NZ Herald
NZ Herald
Nurses Organisation spokeswoman Glenda Alexander said the overwhelming majority of nurses were vaccinated. However, the union had fielded up to 20 ...
Covid-19: Handful of health professionals threaten to quit over vaccine mandate | Stuff.co.nz
Stuff.co.nz
Of about 53,000 members, the country's main union for nurses, the New Zealand Nursing Organisation (NZNO), has had fewer than 10 resign their ...
DHBs
Hospital sewage leaks 'not acceptable'
The Prime Minister says raw sewage seeping into the walls of Whangārei Hospital won't be tolerated.
Waikato DHB warned a cyber attack 'catastrophic for patient safety' | Stuff.co.nz
Stuff.co.nz
Months before being brought to its knees in a ransomware attack, the DHB was warned its IT security was inadequate and severly compromised.
Diabetes
Counties Manukau DHB says $300m funding shortfall affects diabetes treatment
The Counties Manukau DHB estimates the Ministry of Health has underfunded it by $300 million over the past decade, which has affected its ability to treat chronic illnesses such as diabetes.
Maori health
State racism caused historical Māori overrepresentation in state care, report finds
Successive governments enacted racist policies and failed Māori families and children, new research into the extent of abuse in state care against tamariki Māori has found.
Māori kai and diet knowledge sought to promote wellness
A wāhine Māori dietician is launching a project to gather Māori knowledge and tikanga to help improve the health of for whānau, hapū and iwi.
Maternity and midwifery
Covid-19: Hospital not accepting new mums because of midwife shortage post vaccine mandate
St George’s Maternity Hospital in Christchurch will not be accepting postnatal mums because of a midwife shortage caused by the Covid-19 vaccine mandate.
Mental health
Patient on suicide watch not given recommended supervision due to understaffing, says nurse
NZ Herald
Unsafe staffing was a key factor that caused the nurse to resign after 20 years. ... New Zealand. Patient on suicide watch not given recommended ...
Staff shortages plague mental health services
Canterbury’s mental health services are struggling to solve mounting staffing shortages while borders are closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Primary health care
GPs deal with more self-isolating patients as regional health service 'overwhelmed'
South Auckland GPs say they are dealing with growing numbers of Covid-19 patients self-isolating at home because the service that assesses the new cases is "overwhelmed".
GCH Aviation Launches New NZ Flying Doctor Service Facility In Nelson | Scoop News
Scoop
Flight nurses will have a dedicated space to plan their missions and the extra room allows a much better level of support for patients, and keeps them ...
Private health providers
Deal signed to get more public surgeries at private hospital
Palmerston North’s private hospital Crest has come to the rescue of the public hospital, building a new operating theatre to enable more patients to get operations on time.
Public health
New hub designed to help polio survivors opens
If it was up to Jennifer Yorke, everyone in New Zealand would be vaccinated against Covid-19.
Yorke, along with thousands of Kiwis, knows all too well the cost of not being vaccinated after she suffered the lifelong debilitating effects of poliomyelitis.
Articles of interest
The article below is not freely available but may be accessed through databases and libraries to which readers have access. Alternatively SnIPS can provide it on a cost recoverable basis
Moral distress in community health nursing practice.
Guzys Diana, Tori Kathleen, Mather Carey (2021)
Australian Journal of Primary Health 27, 350-353.
https://doi.org/10.1071/PY20276
Contemporary sociopolitical circumstance impedes the delivery of primary health care in keeping with its underlying philosophy and tenets. Skills to negotiate the maintenance of best practice and quality care in an evolving practice environment are fundamental to nursing. Nurse education needs to incorporate the ideals of best practice ideology to ensure that all are prepared to negotiate the realities of nursing practice. In this discussion paper the experience of moral distress by community health nurses is used to illustrate why skills in political advocacy and action are equally essential as clinical skills in nurse education and professional practice.
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 of 16 November
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