NZNO – Page 5 – Kaitiaki Nursing New Zealand

January 2025

2024 strikes an amazing expression of ‘kotahitanga’

By Renee Kiriona

December 20, 2024

The last of the health strikes for 2024 have ended with one of their negotiators encouraging nurses, midwives and healthcare workers throughout Aotearoa to keep up the “kotahitanga” leading into the new year.

December 2024

Rolling nurse strikes reinforce plea for patient safety

By Samesh Mohanlall and Renee Kiriona

December 13, 2024

Thousands of Te Whatu Ora nurses and kaiāwhina at different locations throughout the country are taking part in rolling strikes, reinforcing their message for more patient safety.

January 2025

Safe staffing and stronger community health care — returning president and vice-president share their aims

By Mary Longmore

December 9, 2024

In the first of two leadership profiles, Kaitiaki talks to returning NZNO president Anne Daniels and vice-president Nano Tunnicliff about their priorities.

December 2024

Nationwide strike: ‘It’s not right’ – patients speak up

By Renee Kiriona and Mary Longmore

December 4, 2024

“Our hospitals aren’t safe – I’ve seen it. We need more nurses and they need to treated better and paid properly.”

November 2024

Non-Māori nurses have nothing to fear in joining hīkoi

By Renee Kiriona

November 12, 2024

“To our Pākeha nurses, there’s nothing to fear when you see thousands of Māori marching down the street. Come and join us, you’ll have fun and learn a lot about tangata whenua and our country’s founding document.”

November 2024

Stopwork nationwide hui pass five fight-back motions

By Renee Kiriona

October 23, 2024

Thousands of workers across the country stopped work today to take part in multiple hui to fight back on what unions are describing as this Government’s relentless attacks on working people.

October 2024

Pacific peoples warned grass isn’t always healthier in NZ

By Renee Kiriona

September 26, 2024

The first Pasifika nurse to gain a doctorate is warning her kin to think long and hard before making the move to New Zealand.

September 2024

Te Whatu Ora bargaining for 35,000 nurses enters day one

By Renee Kiriona

September 25, 2024

New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki O Aotearoa entered day one of collective contract negotiations with Te Whatu Ora this morning.

September 2024

Show of solidarity before bargaining begins

By Renee Kiriona

September 24, 2024

Bargaining begins tomorrow on NZNO’s biggest collective agreement between more than 30,000 nurses and Te Whatu Ora.

November 2022

‘The key performance indicator I have to meet is with my people’

By Mary Longmore

October 21, 2022

In the third part of a series on NZNO’s board members, Tauranga nurse Anamaria Watene says she finds solace in her marae, Tahuwhakatiki, and sacred local mountain, Mauao, when challenges such as racial prejudice become too much.

Daily doses – uncut news

25 Mar	National Diabetes Roadmap launched to improve care, prevention, and quality of life Health New Zealand has launched a new National Diabetes Roadmap (‘the Roadmap’) to improve care, strengthen prevention, and support better health outcomes and quality of life for people living with diabetes.
24 Mar	ACT should leave nursing to professionals and medical evidence Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa NZNO Kaiwhakahaere Kerri Nuku says ACT MP Todd Stephenson has dismissed the Nursing Council’s draft code of conduct - which proposes strengthening cultural safety, whānau-centred care and te Tiriti o Waitangi obligations - as political ideology.
23 Mar	UK report reflects ICN warnings on international recruitment ripoff — now countries must act together The International Council of Nurses (ICN) warmly welcomes a new report from the UK All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Global Health and Security that recognizes the huge sums saved by high-income countries who recruit abroad and acknowledges the severe harms caused by unethical recruitment from fragile source countries left without nurses.
20 Mar	HPV self-test boosts cervical cancer screening ‘across the board’, new study confirms Making human papillomavirus (HPV) self-testing available to all women increases the number of people screened for cervical cancer, a new study led by researchers from Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington has confirmed.
19 Mar	ICN at CSW70: Violence against nurses is a gendered crisis threatening global health The International Council of Nurses (ICN) has warned that violence against nurses is a global gendered crisis that threatens health systems, patient safety and workforce sustainability
17 Mar	Additional winter health care workers a drop in the ocean of need The Government’s announcement today of 378 extra staff to help hospitals cope with winter demand is a drop in the ocean of what patients need, NZNO says.
12 Mar	Funding change will ensure more consistent emergency care for New Zealanders A simple change in how ambulance medicines are funded is set to create more consistent emergency care.
9 Mar	Questions over dilapidated and cramped renal unit forced to ration dialysis The Health Minister must explain why after years of concerns from nurses about Christchurch Hospital’s barely functioning dialysis unit, he only stepped in late yesterday when life-saving treatment had to be rationed, NZNO says.
3 Mar	Hospitals and health workers should never be targets The right of health care workers to provide care during international conflicts must be protected, Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa NZNO says.
2 Mar	Public and Mental Health Nurses settle collective agreement Health New Zealand welcomes the ratification of the two Public Service Association (PSA) Public and Mental Health Nurses collective employment agreements for Auckland and the Rest of New Zealand.
27 Feb	Whakatāne Hospital to resume secondary obstetrics and gynaecology services Whakatāne Hospital will resume secondary obstetrics and gynaecology services from 8am on 13 April 2026.
26 Feb	Counsellors warn NZ is normalising crisis levels of youth distress Youth mental distress has become entrenched, suicide remains a national tragedy, and our systems are failing to intervene early enough, says the New Zealand Association of Counsellors (NZAC).
26 Feb	Record uptake nearly doubles advanced nurse education scholarships A record 235 primary care registered nurses will begin advanced education this year – nearly doubling the number originally planned – following strong demand for the Government’s new Registered Nurse Primary Care Scholarships, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.
19 Feb	‘Top Up’ to deliver faster access to support Seven grassroots mental health initiatives supporting small and hard-to-reach communities have received funding to deliver faster access to support, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey announced today.
18 Feb	Pharmac proposes funding new treatments that could transform early care for people with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, a type of blood cancer People in New Zealand living with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) could soon benefit from funded access to targeted treatments under a new proposal from Pharmac.
13 Feb	Te Whatu Ora’s embarrassing U-turn over proposed car park plan Te Whatu Ora needs to go back to the drawing board and prioritise worker safety after reversing plans to charge hospital workers market rates for car parks, NZNO says.
11 Feb	Stark differences in COVID-19 vaccination rates between Māori and non-Māori, research finds A new study analysing COVID-19 vaccine uptake has found markedly lower vaccination rates among Māori, which researchers link to existing inequities in healthcare access.
9 Feb	ICN’s call for International Nurses Day 2026: empower nurses to save lives ICN has announced the theme for International Nurses Day (IND) 2026: Our Nurses. Our Future. Empowered Nurses Save Lives. This focus sends a clear message that to maximize the full life-saving impact of the nursing workforce, we must empower nurses with safe, fair work environments and full nursing practice, influence, and leadership.
5 Feb	Global nurse leaders gather in Japan to address urgent workforce crisis Nursing leaders from Japan and around the world are gathering in Yokohama this week for two major nursing events that are advancing the global conversation on how countries can protect, retain and invest in their nursing workforce as pressures mount across health systems worldwide.
4 Feb	Midwives to deliver more vaccinations to help protect families Midwives are now able to offer a wider range of funded immunisations, supporting families from pregnancy through the early months of a child’s life, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.
30 Jan	Opening of E Tū Wairua Hinengaro – Mason Clinic Health New Zealand has marked the opening of E Tū Wairua Hinengaro, a new purpose-built facility at Auckland’s Mason Clinic designed to strengthen and modernise forensic mental healthcare in Aotearoa.
29 Jan	NZNO disgusted by nurse’s killing in the US Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa NZNO has expressed disgust at the shooting and killing of nurse Alex Pretti on a Minneapolis, US street on Saturday morning by federal officers.
27 Jan	New national group forms to support public healthcare in Aotearoa Kaitiaki Hauora - Together for Public Health has been formed as a national group bringing together patients, health workers, iwi and Māori health representatives, unions, advocacy organisations, and community groups, with backing from a growing number of organisations across the health sector.
22 Jan	Pharmac proposes to fund life changing treatments for people with cystic fibrosis Pharmac is proposing to fund new treatment options for people living with cystic fibrosis with eligible mutations, including young children, from 1 April 2026.
05 Jan	Nurses pay tribute to Dame Poutasi The passing of Dame Karen Poutasi has seen Aotearoa lose one of its foremost health leaders and a woman of high integrity, Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa NZNO Kaiwhakahaere Kerri Nuku says.
12 Dec	Holidays Act remediation payments update As of 12 December 2025, more than 83,000 current employees (representing nearly 93% of the current workforce) have been paid over $657m holidays act remediation payments for their current role.
8 Dec	Expanding access to everyday medicines Registered nurse prescribers can now prescribe nearly double the number of medicines, significantly expanding access to timely, local care for New Zealanders, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.
1 Dec	Govt breaking promise to local communities Labour’s new Family Doctor Loan Scheme will support doctors and nurse practitioners with low-interest loans to set up new practices or buy into existing ones.