Welcome to the College of Nurses Aotearoa News Update.
No. 621 Wednesday 30 November 2022
Weekly news round-up of nursing and health information in New Zealand and internationally
New Zealand news
More Hawke's Bay Nurses Now Able To Prescribe While Working In The Community
Twenty-five registered nurses graduated from the Registered Nurse ... Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand to run Hawke's Bay's inaugural programme.
Health staff working outside of hospitals set to get a pay increase | RNZ News
About 20,000 health staff who work outside of hospitals are set to get a pay rise to bring them in line with those who do, the government has announced.
Government agrees to $200m annual boost to aged-care nurses wages | Stuff.co.nz
The Government has agreed to boost aged-care nurses' pay by $200 million a year ... with Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand would soon be paid more.
College Of Nurses Aotearoa (NZ) Welcomes Announcement From Minister Little Re Pay Parity
The College of Nurses welcomes today’s announcement from Minister Little that the Government is committed to addressing pay inequities for nurses working in Aged Care, Hospice, Māori and Pacific health providers.
New Zealand Nurses Organisation 'very happy' after Government announces new pay parity deal
An estimated 20000 community health and aged-care facility workers will see a pay increase.
Nurses Organisation on 200m boost for hospice, aged care - RNZ
The government has announced $200 million a year to bring the wages of nurses working in aged care, hospice and Māori and Pasifika health in line with their hospital counterparts.
Aged Care Matters acknowledges pay parity announcement for nurses | Voxy.co.nz
Aged Care Matters, a movement focussed on addressing the critical Government underfunding of aged residential care services, welcomes the Government’s announcement today regarding pay parity for nurses.
Rural General Practice Nurses Once Again Overlooked By The Minister - Scoop NZ
Equally, the situation for nurses at community-funded rural hospitals is also unknown. Chair of Hauora Taiwhenua, Dr Fiona Bolden, states: “This is a ...
Role Call - People on the move and getting recognition in the health sector
Adventure-loving nurse adds another role
UK-trained nurse practitioner Nicky Burwood has been a medic in Afghanistan, central America and Africa in her almost 23 years’ nursing career and is an urgent-care NP at Queenstown Medical Centre.
Kiwi nurse on the 'chilling' abuses Ukrainians suffer at hands of Russian army | Stuff.co.nz
Villagers talk about being stripped naked at gunpoint and being lined up against a wall, the Queenstown nurse says.
International news
Is simulation training in nursing education equitable? - Mirage News
Before new nurses ever interact with a patient at the bedside, chances are they’ve spent some hours in simulation training. These encounters that mimic the real thing are proven to increase nurses’ confidence and improve patient outcomes.
Nursing and Midwifery Health Program Victoria (NMHPV) to go national
As a counsellor at Victoria’s unique mental health service for nurses and midwives, registered nurse Carolyn McDonald helps colleagues across the professions confront and navigate issues including stress and anxiety, depression, substance use and vicarious trauma.
Nurse who failed to provide CPR to unresponsive baby in Victorian jail condemned over behaviour
Prison nurse Georgina Melody, a New Zealand national new to Melbourne, had refused 'Baby A' first aid upon finding her unresponsive within a dedicated ...
Western Australian nurses and midwives strike after rejecting pay and conditions offer - ABC
Union 'risking patient safety'. A full-page newspaper ad by the government warned "Western Australians will experience disruptions at public hospitals ...
Nurses to strike for two days as December disruption deepens | Industrial action
The first nurses' strike on 15 December will fall during a planned week ... you to the all the business news and analysis you need every morning.
Nurses are struggling – our strike has been a long time coming - The Guardian
A nurse explains why he will be striking over pay, understaffing and the future of the NHS.
What Spain needs to solve worrying shortage of nurses - The Olive Press
Spain is battling a concerning shortage of nurses and experts in the …
Aged care
Labour schemes drawing nurses from across Pacific to lower-qualified aged care jobs in ...
The departure of over-qualified Pacific Island nurses who are taking up aged care jobs in countries such as Australia has experts concerned the "brain drain" is leaving critical gaps in the region's healthcare systems. Read more
Covid
Covid-19: Daily cases average highest in three months
Exactly 6000 new Covid-19 cases have been reported on Tuesday – pushing the 14-day average to the highest since the end of winter.
Education
PMA invests $10000 award into Pacific Health Education Scholarships
The Pasifika Medical Association (PMA) has announced that it will invest the $10,000 received with the Arataki Award for Leadership in the Community into health scholarships through their Pacific Education Fund. Read more
Emergency/urgent care
ED Covid testing adding to strain and workload, says top doctor
Testing patients at most emergency departments for Covid is delaying their care and unnecessarily adding to clinicians’ workloads, a top ED doctor says, as hospitals around the country strain under a rising tide of ill health and a growing list of surgeries.
HDC cases and disciplinary actions
Mental health service failed to provide culturally appropriate care
An Auckland mental health service failed to provide a Cook Islands Māori woman with culturally appropriate care before her death, a report has found.
Clear understanding of responsibilities and processes for consultant handover vital for patient care - HDC
The importance of having clear systems in place to ensure emergency department (ED) clinicians are aware of which consultant has responsibility for each patient, and processes for consultant handovers was highlighted in a decision published by Deputy Health and Disability Commissioner Dr Vanessa Caldwell.
Health NZ Te Whatu Ora
Doctors challenge health minister to be 'an ethical employer' | Stuff.co.nz
Senior medical specialists have directly challenged the health minister to properly pay and resource a health workforce at breaking point.
Tauranga Hospital patient finds black mould at mental health seclusion room - NZ Herald
A nurses' union says it is “really inappropriate” for people experiencing mental illness to be exposed to anything detrimental to their physical ...
Hutt Hospital's maternity unit at 'code red' capacity more times in three months than in previous four years
The number of situations at Hutt Hospital’s maternity unit where health resources are stretched to their limits has increased by 400% in less than a year.
Middlemore’s radiology department grapples with staffing shortages
A backlog of people waiting for CT scans has reached crisis levels as radiology staffing shortages and people leaving the profession impact frontline services, a union says.
Health Minister says state of Whangārei Hospital worse than anything he's seen
The need to replace wards at Whangārei Hospital is so great – with pipes threatening to burst and health and safety concerns – the Government cannot fund it all in one stage.
Te Whatu Ora chairman describes workplace pressures on staff after visit to Middlemore ED
Te Whatu Ora chairman Rob Campbell says a recent visit to Middlemore Hospital’s emergency department gave him a first-hand insight into what it’s like for frontline healthcare workers.
Extra $51m promised for new 80-bed unit at Christchurch mental health facility
Plans to upgrade one of the worst mental health facilities in the country have been given the final seal of approval – along with another $51 million due to rising construction costs.
Little pledges scrutiny of Southland Hospital capacity issues
Southland Hospital has capacity issues that “need to be considered pretty soon’’ Health Minister Andrew Little has acknowledged.
Health system
EDs are clogged. GPs are booked out. What will it take to fix the health system?
It is a parent’s worst nightmare. Their pre-schooler is sick and upset. Healthline advises them to take her to the emergency department, because the welts and swelling on her face could be an allergic reaction to the general anaesthetic she had earlier that day.
Health workforce and recruitment
International nurses told to prepare a year in advance to work in NZ | Stuff.co.nz
Nurses wanting to practise in New Zealand must first apply to the Nursing Council of New Zealand's credentials verification service at CGFNS, ...
Dr Shane Reti: Provincial hospitals like Northland have highest ED nursing shortages
Northland hospitals have one of the highest emergency department nurse vacancy rates in the country, National's health spokesman Dr Shane Reti says.
Primary health care
Patients turned away from west Auckland clinics as GPs lacking
Doctors at a West Auckland clinic say patients are facing increased wait times for appointments or being turned away altogether as the number of GPs in New Zealand stagnates.
South Islanders set to be offered virtual GP, specialist services
Healthcare technology firm Tend has bought a stake in a Christchurch-based medical group for an undisclosed sum.
Private Health care
Private hospital CEO issues statement slamming 'unnecessary' nurses strike | Stuff.co.nz
Negotiations are breaking down over a planned strike for nurses at private hospitals in Wellington and Hawke’s Bay.
Public health
Almost half of Kiwi mums undecided about 'anti-cancer' HPV vaccine, study shows
Up to half of New Zealand mothers were undecided about their children having the HPV vaccine, new research shows, amid concerns vaccination rates “plummeted” during the pandemic.
Tobacco, drugs and alcohol
Ministry of Health not striking the right balance with vaping regulations
The Ministry of Health is not striking the right balance between protecting young people from the harms of vaping and making vapes available for current smokers to use as a quit smoking tool says the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation of New Zealand.
Reports and Journals online
Māori Health Review
Arotake Hauora Māori
Issue 100
In this landmark issue, we feature a Lancet study of racism experiences among a multi-ethnic adolescent population in New Zealand.
Other highlights include:
- Mortality outcomes and inequities in rural Māori
- Diagnostic coding accuracy by emergency department clinicians
- Understanding the workforce supporting Indigenous people with diabetes
Read more
Pacific Health Review
Issue 35
Welcome to Issue 35 of Pacific Health Review.
This issue covers a range of topics of interest to Pacific people living in Aotearoa NZ, including a study providing important information on barriers to older Pacific peoples’ participation in the NZ healthcare system.
Other highlights include:
- Understanding barriers to immunisation in Pacific people
- Helicobacter pylori in NZ – diagnostic trends and related costs
- Pasifika women’s knowledge and perceptions of cervical screening
Read more
Health Times
Pandemic catalyst for wave of nursing careers
Anti-ageism language guide launched
Cognitive impairment and dementia
Transition shock: avoidable or part of the journey?
Articles of interest
Engaging with our responsibility to protect health from climate change.
Lokmic-Tomkins, Z., Nayna Schwerdtle, P. and Armstrong, F. (2022),
J Adv Nurs. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.15508
Throughout the history of nursing, we have demonstrated our value in providing care, patient advocacy, prevention of injury, health promotion, education, research and policymaking (Thorne, 2021; Wei & Horton-Deutsch, 2022). In the process, we have earned the community's trust -trust that is now needed to help communities adapt to climate change and to prepare climate-resilient healthcare systems. This editorial summarizes interventions for nurses to lead a meaningful change at the individual, local, national and global levels. Read more
Conceptual model for nurse educators to facilitate their presence in large class groups of nursing students through reflective practices: a theory synthesis.
Froneman, K., du Plessis, E. & van Graan, A.C.
BMC Nurs 21, 317 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-022-01095-7
Nurse educators are required to be present and reflective while directly involving nursing students in teaching–learning using creative and innovative interaction. Heavy daily workloads (including the teaching of large classes, clinical supervision and research) could hamper facilitating their presence through reflective practices. There is insufficient information on how nurse educators can facilitate their presence through reflective practices in large class groups of nursing students.
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 29 November
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