Safe staffing – Kaitiaki Nursing New Zealand

November 2024

Nurses and kaiāwhina vote to strike before Christmas

By Mary Longmore

November 18, 2024

Unhappy with Te Whatu Ora’s bargaining position, nurses and kaiāwhina have voted strongly to hold an eight-hour nationwide strike on December 3 followed by rolling district strikes.

September 2024

Where’s the money? Nurses challenge Government over its health targets plan

By Mary Longmore

September 13, 2024

Exhausted emergency, perioperative, primary health and cancer nurses may be left wondering how they are meant to treat more patients quicker, without any more funding.

July 2024

‘My God you’re influential — use it’. Call to action for nurses, kaiāwhina and midwives to push for safe staffing

By Mary Longmore

July 9, 2024

The real-life stories of nurses, combined with hard evidence on the harm caused by poorly staffed hospitals, are crucial to getting safe nurse-to-patient ratios legalised here in Aotearoa, nurse leaders heard.

July 2024

New Zealand can lead the world in culturally safe nurse-to-patient ratios

By Mary Longmore

July 4, 2024

Māori nursing leaders want Aotearoa, New Zealand, to be the first in the world to introduce culturally safe nurse-to-patient ratios, alongside clinical.

June 2024

From far north to deep south, nurses and kaiāwhina call for change

By Mary Longmore

June 25, 2024

Nurses and kaiāwhina who jumped aboard the country-wide safe staffing bus tour say public support has been “amazing” — and want the Government to invest in safely staffed hospitals.

June 2024

‘We are sick and tired of being burnt out’ — safe staffing bus tour starts with a sizzle in the far North

By Mary Longmore

June 10, 2024

Nurses in Northland, Nelson and Palmerston North kicked off an 11-day safe staffing bus tour of Aotearoa on Monday with a sizzle in the sunny north — and some drizzle further south.

May 2024

‘People aren’t on a spreadsheet’ — nurses share pain over latest cut-backs with health leaders

By Mary Longmore

May 30, 2024

A nurse who has quit and another who “literally ran” her entire shift were among those who spoke to Te Whatu Ora leaders face-to-face about latest cost-cutting — one breaking down in tears as she spoke.

May 2024

‘It’s bittersweet, but I don’t think I want to nurse here anymore’

By Mary Longmore

May 16, 2024

An Auckland nurse says she is reluctantly giving up on nursing in Aotearoa after burning out just six weeks after coming back to work here.

May 2024

Nurses and kaiāwhina across Aotearoa brave chill winds to call for safer staffing

By Mary Longmore

May 9, 2024

Nurses and kaiāwhina braving brutal near-zero temperatures in some places to speak up for safer staffing received warm support from the public as they rallied across the country today.

May 2024

‘It’s heart-breaking’ — nurses and kaiāwhina to rally across Aotearoa for safe staffing

By Mary Longmore

May 8, 2024

From aged care to mental health, nurses and health-care assistants (HCAs) are rallying around the country tomorrow (May 9) for safer staffing ratios ahead of this month’s Budget 2024.

January 2024

‘Listen to us — keep us safe’: Nurses nationwide call for funding from new Government over nursing crisis

By Mary Longmore

December 1, 2023

Te Whatu Ora nurses have described gruelling workplaces, rife with burnout, violence and unsafe staffing levels, as they turn out across the country to demand more investment in their workforce.

November 2023

‘I won’t be silenced’ — Gisborne Hospital nurse whistleblower fears she is a target after disciplinary attempt

By Mary Longmore

October 9, 2023

Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa–NZNO is taking legal action to support Gisborne Hospital ward 5 nurse Christine Warrander after hospital managers threatened her with disciplinary action over a social media post.

August 2023

Te Whatu Ora members prepare to strike as call goes out for 4000 more nurses

By co-editors

July 27, 2023

Te Whatu Ora nurses, midwives, kaiāwhina and health-care assistants are preparing to strike next month, as NZNO calls for thousands more nurses to fill workforce gaps.

August 2023

Maranga Mai! What needs to change for a safe, representative and flourishing nursing workforce?

By Mary Longmore

July 25, 2023

Safe staffing, funding and mentoring for all nurses are key to a flourishing, representative and skilled workforce with enough Māori and Pacific to safely care for all Aotearoa communities — a key focus of NZNO’s Maranga Mai! strategy.

July 2023

Mental health nursing ‘beyond crisis’

By Mary Longmore

June 19, 2023

NZNO mental health nurses say their workforce is “beyond crisis” with record levels of violence — often fuelled by methamphetamine — coinciding with a dearth of senior nurses.

June 2023

Hundreds support striking Gisborne nurses after court win

By Mary Longmore

May 24, 2023

A hard-won one-hour strike by 24 Gisborne Hospital ward 5 nurses and health-care assistants (HCAs) this afternoon drew “huge” support, says an emotional nurse who led the fight all the way to the courtoom.

June 2023

‘This is for every other nurse in New Zealand’ — Gisborne ward 5 nurses celebrate right to strike over safety fears

By Mary Longmore

May 24, 2023

Gisborne Hospital ward 5 nurses and health-care assistants are jubilant over winning the right to strike for safer conditions and say it opens the door for other nurses struggling in unsafe conditions to take action.

June 2023

‘They’re stabbing us in the back’ — Gisborne Hospital moves to block ward 5 nurses’ strike

By Mary Longmore

May 21, 2023

Gisborne Hospital nurses say they’re not surprised by Te Whatu Ora’s move to try and block their strike with legal action.

June 2023

‘We’ve been rolling over too long, we’re not going to do it anymore’ — Gisborne nurses to strike

By Mary Longmore

May 16, 2023

Nursing staff at Gisborne Hospital’s ward 5 feel they have no choice but to take strike action this month, after worsening conditions have left them and patients increasingly unsafe.

March 2023

Thames Hospital staffing hit by cyclone road closures

By Cate Macintosh

February 17, 2023

Coromandel nurses who live on the east coast of the peninsula face an uncertain working future as Cyclone Gabrielle has wreaked havoc on the roads they travel to Thames Hospital.

20 Nov	A Global Map of Winter Depression Healthnews has released an extensive study that ranks 194 countries based on their winter-pattern Seasonal Depression Disorder (SAD) risk.
18 Nov	Potential travel disruption expected with Tuesday’s national Hīkoi Health New Zealand \| Te Whatu Ora urges those with an appointment scheduled at Wellington Regional Hospital on Tuesday morning or early afternoon, to please allow extra time to get to appointments.
15 Nov	ICN’s calls on G20 leaders to address international health worker migration crisis Ahead of the G20 Leaders Summit in Rio de Janeiro next week, the International Council of Nurses (ICN) welcomes the Declarations recently adopted by the G20 Health Working Group and health ministers.
13 Nov	Measles case confirmed in Tāmaki Makaurau Health New Zealand \| Te Whatu Ora has confirmed today that a new case of measles has been identified on Waiheke Island in Auckland. The case and their household are being supported by the National Public Health Service (NPHS), with those most at risk now in quarantine to help reduce the chance of further spread.
5 Nov	Safety fears ahead of changes to mental health 111 calls Mental Health Nurses have serious concerns about the safety of their patients, the public, their colleagues and themselves when police changes to emergency 111 calls come into effect on Monday, New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa says.
31 Oct	General practices welcome fast-track approvals process A new fast-track approval process is a good start, but more is needed to fix New Zealand’s chronic GP shortage, says the General Practice Owners Association (GenPro)
24 Oct	International Council of Nurses Bucharest Declaration priorities for the future of nursing The International Council of Nurses (ICN) marked the 125 years since its founding in 1899 with an anniversary conference held in Bucharest, Romania and hosted by the Order of Nurses, Midwives, and Medical Assistants of Romania.
10 Oct	Call to immunise now as New Zealand at high risk of whooping cough outbreak Pregnant people, babies, children and others at high risk from whooping cough are urged to get vaccinated as soon as possible, as Aotearoa New Zealand stands at high risk of an outbreak.
9 Oct	New pilot with Plunket to deliver childhood immunisations To increase access and boost immunisation rates, Health New Zealand \| Te Whatu Ora and Whānau Āwhina Plunket will pilot the delivery of childhood immunisations at a select number of sites across the country.
8 Oct	Health NZ Begins Development of National Perinatal Bereavement Care Pathway As Baby Loss Awareness Week shines a light on the heartbreak faced by many, Health NZ is taking a compassionate and hopeful step forward in transforming the support available for whānau who experience the loss of a baby.
7 Oct	Govt takes the scalpel to regional health budgets At Labour’s insistence, Te Whatu Ora financial documents have been released by the Health Select Committee today showing more cuts are on the way for our health system.
2 Oct	Orion Health and Streamliners form strategic partnership Orion Health, a global leader in digital health solutions, has announced a strategic partnership with Streamliners, creators of HealthPathways which provides an online manual used to assist with clinical assessments.
1 Oct	Rollout of new medicines across New Zealand begins Today marks the first day a range of new medicines, including cancer medicines, will start to become available in hospitals and health centres across the country.
27 Sept	New Dunedin hospital: Southerners deserve better The Government’s announcement today that it will scale back the new Dunedin hospital will negatively impact patient care, the New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki O Aotearoa says.
26 Sept	Govt not addressing health workforce crisis The National Government is hiding the gaps in the health workforce from New Zealanders, by not producing a full workforce plan nearly a year into their tenure.
25 Sept	New programme offers step up for jobseekers seeking a career in health and wellbeing Local jobseekers have an exciting new opportunity to begin a career in Health following the launch of a new community-based kaiāwhina programme in the Hutt Valley.
23 Sept	Ministers oblivious to cuts’ effect on families The National Government is oblivious to the impact cuts to services will have on New Zealanders who are doing the hard yards caring for mentally ill family members.
19 Sept	Wānaka community to benefit from new overnight health service Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says an Overnight Acute Care Service opening in October will provide people in Wānaka and the surrounding area with the assurance of quality overnight care closer to home.
17 Sept	Dr Le Heron takes title of 2024 Alzheimers NZ Fellow Distinguished neurologist and cognitive neuroscientist, Dr Campbell Le Heron, has been made the 2024 Alzheimers NZ Fellow for his work researching and managing cognitive disorders.
11 Sept	Aged care will be worse off if redesign rushed New Zealanders needing aged care support and the people who care for them will be worse off if the Government pushes through a flawed and rushed redesign of dementia and aged care.
11 Sept	Govt takes action on mpox response, widens access to vaccine The Government is taking immediate action on a number of steps around New Zealand’s response to mpox, including improving access to vaccine availability so people who need it can do so more easily, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti and Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today.
10 Sept	ICN launches new position statement and discussion paper setting out a revolution in the delivery of Primary Health Care The International Council of Nurses (ICN) is launching its new position statement and a discussion paper on Primary Health Care (PHC) at its Nurse Practitioner/Advanced Practice Nursing Network (NP/APN Network) Conference in Aberdeen, Scotland.
9 Sept	First cancer medicine decision following Pharmac funding boost Pharmac has decided to widen access to two medicines for several types of cancer. Pembrolizumab (branded as Keytruda) will be funded from 1 October 2024 for eligible people with advanced triple-negative breast cancer, head and neck cancer, colorectal cancer, bladder cancer, and Hodgkin lymphoma. Nivolumab (branded as Opdivo) will be funded from 1 November for eligible people with kidney cancer.
6 Sept	Health agencies working with Police on rebalancing roles for mental health responses Health New Zealand \| Te Whatu Ora and the Ministry of Health - Manatū Hauora are working with Police to change some of the ways agencies respond to mental health. The change will see an increased health-led response, supporting Police to focus on core Policing.
4 Sept	Nurses’ bargaining starts with action for safe staffing Nurses are kicking off their collective bargaining with Te Whatu Ora by taking action for safe staffing on Friday, New Zealand Nurses Organisation Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa (NZNO) says.