Health Minister Andrew Little says he’s well aware of overcrowding and stress issues at many of New Zealand’s emergency departments.
Doctors and nurses at many hospitals are speaking of the issues they are experiencing, with Wellington Hospital ED's health and safety rep issuing a provisional improvement notice to Capital and Coast DHB last week.
It came after nurses were unable to physically see all the patients that came in last Tuesday night, or keep vulnerable patients apart.
Little says the ministry has a weekly team meeting weekly with the ED management of most DHBs.
“There is very intense monitoring of what’s happening and we are providing support to DHBs to make sure they can cope.”
DHBs are struggling to have enough nurses to cover shifts, Little told media yesterday.
“When EDs get a spike in presentations that puts even more pressure on nurses.”
Management of hospitals and patient flow needs to improve in order to alleviate pressure from the front line, he says.
The New Zealand Nurses Organisation’s Wellington representative, Jo Coffey, told 1 NEWS provisional improvement notices are rare, which goes to show the staff are at the end of their tether.
According to a survey conducted by Auckland Hospital emergency medicine consultant Dr Mike Nicholls, over half of hospital staff surveyed feel burn out.
Nicholls told Breakfast three in five nurses met the criteria for work related burnout.
“If staff are able to do a good job for their patients it improves their wellbeing. That includes having good resources, educational opportunities, working in a great team and being supported,” says Nicholls.
Capital and Coast DHB’s chief medical officer John Tait says they are aiming to implement safety measures to prevent overcrowding by the end of the week.
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