Nurses and midwives across NSW have taken to the Supreme Court to fight against systemic understaffing that they believe is robbing patients of vital care.
Nurses and midwives across NSW have taken to the Supreme Court to fight against systemic understaffing that they believe is robbing patients of vital care.
In their statement of claim, the NSW Nurses and Midwives Association (NSWNMA) has cited systemic non-compliance with staffing ratios in hospitals across the state.
The union says that the court action is a last resort following multiple non-compliance disputes which have failed to address the problem.
The union claims that patients at multiple hospitals have recently missed out on 120,000 of nursing care due to the continued staffing breaches.
Union general secretary Shaye Cadish believed the numbers given to the court are a conservative estimate.
“The NSW government’s preferred staffing model is no longer fit for purpose and, despite the best efforts of nurses working short-staffed, it is not delivering a safe level of care to patients when they need it most,” said Cadish of the staffing conditions.
“We are talking about hundreds of thousands of nursing care hours not provided on general medical and surgical wards, meaning patients may have missed timely care, such as blood pressure checks, wound care, or showers due to inadequate or unsafe staffing.
“Delays in clinical care can lead to suboptimal patient outcomes such as increased falls risks, hospital acquired infections like pneumonia, pressure area sores, and blood clots.”
Legally mandated staff ratios have already been introduced in the Victoria, Queensland and the ACT, but the union says NSW is lagging behind.
Health Minister Brad Hazzard has argued that the action is a political move on the basis that the disputed shifts comprise just a fraction of total shifts.
“That is a clear indication that this is purely politics,” he said.
“In my view, the union action, when it only amounts to 1500 shifts out of 1,587,000 shifts, you will not get a lot of substance in court trying to get action 10 days out from an election.”
NSWNMA Assistant General Secretary Michael Whaites said that nurses, midwives and patients deserve better.
“A shift by shift nurse-to-patient ratio system is the solution but the government refuses to acknowledge this,” Whaites said.
“In the past, we have taken multiple non-compliance disputes to the NSW Industrial Relations Commission, yet the non-compliance continues. Patients are missing out on basic care and staff are being worked into the ground – it has to stop.”
