Articles – Page 12 – Kaitiaki Nursing New Zealand

September 2025

‘All we can do is take the buggers to court’ — teachers, nurses, librarians join forces in legal challenge

By Mary Longmore

August 29, 2025

Wāhine across female-dominated workforces stood together outside the High Court in Wellington today, as their unions filed joint legal action against the Government’s $12.8 billion rollback of pay equity claims.

January 2026

The forgotten impact of illness, eating and loss

By Linda Christian

December 12, 2025

A nursing lecturer shares her views and experiences of eating-related distress and grief.

December 2025

No more ’embarrassing’ need to consult GPs for basic medications after law change — nurse practitioner

By Natasha Ashworth

December 9, 2025

Nurse practitioners (NPs) finally getting the power to prescribe section 29 unapproved medicines means faster relief for patients — and less embarrassment for nurses, says Gisborne NP Natasha Ashworth.

September 2025

Hutt nurses opt to ‘bleed and feed’ in strike next week

By Renee Kiriona

August 28, 2025

Hundreds of Te Whatu Ora nurses in the Hutt Valley are planning to give away their blood and food during their two days of strikes.

December 2025

‘One of yours’: Rebuilding a safe and coherent mental health crisis system

By Stacey Wilson

December 9, 2025

Mental health crisis services in Aotearoa have endured a decade of increasing pressure, but the past year has pushed the workforce to a critical tipping point.

January 2026

Rethinking Māori health models: a kōhanga reo generation perspective

By Baxter-Lena Edwards

December 5, 2025

A young Māori nurse questions if the time has come to look beyond Te Whare Tapa Whā and consider more comprehensive Māori health frameworks — such as the Meihana Model.

August 2025

Watch: ‘They saved billions on the backs of women’ — second submission made on pay equity

By Joel Maxwell

August 25, 2025

Watch: NZNO was back at the people’s select committee on Monday, before taking the battle for pay equity to the High Court on Friday.

Watch: ‘They saved billions on the backs of women’ — second submission made on pay equity

November 2025

‘The cracks are showing’ — dangerous staffing practices exposed by current strike, says ED nurse

By Rachel Thorn

November 27, 2025

Whangārei Hospital emergency nurse and NZNO delegate Rachel Thorn shares her thoughts on the current work-to-rule strike, as it draws to a close.

September 2025

‘I support them as they have supported us’ — nurses lend a hand to striking teachers

By Mary Longmore and Joel Maxwell

August 21, 2025

NZNO nurses and kaiāwhina might be a little busy with their own strike action — but it didn’t stop a few turning out to support our kaiako (teachers) strike around the country this week.

November 2025

‘Don’t be handmaidens, be critical thinkers’: Strikes reveal emergency-nursing cracks

By Kelly McDonald

November 19, 2025

Hutt emergency nurse Kelly McDonald starts her next shift at 2.45pm and she’s expecting it to be a “shit show”. This NZNO delegate explains what’s wrong with emergency care, how to fix it, and why nurses should stick to the partial strike plan.

September 2025

Mātaki: ‘I penapenahia ngā tāra piriona i runga i ngā tuarā wāhine’ — he tāpaetanga tuarua mō te tautika utu

By Joel Maxwell

August 25, 2025

Mātaki: Kua hoki mai te NZNO ki te komiti whiriwhiri o te tangata i te Mane, i mua i tā rātou whakarewa i te pakanga tautika utu i te Kōti Matua i te Paraire.

Mātaki: ‘I penapenahia ngā tāra piriona i runga i ngā tuarā wāhine’ — he tāpaetanga tuarua mō te tautika utu

September 2025

For goodness sake don’t mention the t-shirts: Nurses on strike forbidden to speak about item of clothing

By Joel Maxwell

August 19, 2025

They could wear the t-shirts — they just couldn’t talk about the t-shirts.

September 2025

Last-minute strike cancellation after Te Whatu Ora barred a third of staff from taking part — Christchurch nurses

By Mary Longmore

August 18, 2025

Christchurch nurses say they cancelled a strike because Te Whatu Ora tried to stop about 70 staff from joining the action — a third of NZNO’s perioperative, radiology and PACU members.

August 2025

Nurses, kaiāwhina and doctors throw weight behind ‘heartbreaking’ patient voice petition

By Mary Longmore

August 14, 2025

Nurses, doctors and patients around the country are making a last big push for signatures on a petition for patient rights, ahead of it being presented to Parliament in November.

May 2025

BUDGET 2025: Funding primary care nurses the answer to the health crisis

By Co-Editors, Kaitiaki

May 21, 2025

To fix chronic staff shortages stopping New Zealanders seeing their GPs when they’re sick, the coalition Government must use Budget 2025 to keep nurses in the sector by paying them the same as hospital nurses, the New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) says.

August 2025

Multiply by five, add a lot of years — decades needed to make up shocking Māori nursing shortfall, report says

By Joel Maxwell

August 14, 2025

Multiply by five and add decades — a new Infometrics report released at the indigenous nurses conference reveals Aotearoa will need a lot of time and enrolments for Māori nursing to hit parity.

August 2025

Watch: ‘Their kids can’t afford shoes’ – NZNO pay equity submission goes before the people’s select committee

By Joel Maxwell

August 13, 2025

WATCH: The Government dodged consultation but now NZNO has joined submitters to the people’s select committee laying out the impacts of axed pay equity claims.

Watch: ‘Their kids can’t afford shoes’ – NZNO pay equity submission goes before the people’s select committee

August 2025

Weekly $100 for some nursing students for placements outside Auckland as squeeze goes on city spots

By Joel Maxwell

August 14, 2025

One of Auckland’s nursing schools has offered cash to its students who do clinical placements outside New Zealand’s biggest city.

August 2025

It’s on: Te Whatu Ora members vote for two days of September strikes

By Joel Maxwell

August 13, 2025

The fight for safe staffing and patient safety in hospitals has ramped up with NZNO Te Whatu Ora members voting for two days of strikes in September.

August 2025

EXCLUSIVE: ‘Psychologist associate’ role knocked back by professional standards board — for now

By Mary Longmore

August 11, 2025

NZNO’s mental health nurses say they are pleased New Zealand’s psychologists’ regulator has turned down a “distracting” proposed new assistant/associate psychologist role — for now.

20 Oct	Winners of the 2026 NZ Primary Healthcare Awards \| He Tohu Mauri Ora announced Over 600 supporters of primary care gathered at the Auckland's Viaduct Events Centre on Saturday night for a glittering gala dinner for the 2026 New Zealand Primary Healthcare Awards \| He Tohu Mauri Ora.
19 Oct	Te Whatu Ora must fully staff vital Starship Children's Hospital wards Te Whatu Ora must fully staff all wards at Starship Children's Hospital including four vital wards which are short of a total of 18 full-time nurses, NZNO says.
16 Oct	Paid placements policy will help boost nursing workforce A policy to pay nursing students a weekly allowance while they're on clinical placements will help them graduate and boost Aotearoa New Zealand's homegrown nursing workforce, NZNO says.
5 Oct	Labour's pay rise a first step, but pay equity needs a full settlement Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa NZNO has welcomed Labour's promised pay rise for care and support workers as a first step. It says care and support workers now need a full settlement of their pay equity claim and a workable pay equity system for all of its members.
1 Oct	Health NZ releases first national report on serious adverse events Health New Zealand has published its first national Serious Adverse Event Report, acknowledging the serious harm experienced by patients and whānau and outlining the improvements identified and actions underway to strengthen patient safety. The report covers serious adverse events reported in Hospital and Specialist Services between 1 July and 31 December 2025.
25 Sept	380 more health care workers at the end of winter too little too late An announcement of 380 additional nurses, midwives and health care assistants for hospitals around the country at the end of winter is too little too late, NZNO says.
23 Sept	Auckland University research finds nurse shortages increase post-surgery deaths and complications New research by Auckland University has found addressing nurse shortages in post-operative care may save 182 lives a year because short-staffed wards have higher rates of potentially preventable deaths and complications after their surgeries.
21 Sept	Whanganui Hospital ED averaged 680% capacity over a week Working in an overcrowded emergency department (ED), up to 680% capacity over a week, makes staff feel overwhelmed with the pressure, Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa NZNO says.
14 Sept	WellSouth's Newborn Enrolment Kahu Taurima Programme a finalist at the Primary Care Awards 2026 WellSouth's Newborn Enrolment Kahu Taurima Programme is a finalist at the Primary Care Awards for the HALEO Best Supplier Service, Product or Campaign category. Winners will be announced on 17 October.
14 Sept	Global Study: Nursing Shortages Require Workforce Policy Solutions, Not Recruitment Campaigns Alone Why people choose nursing, and why they leave, comes down to the same factors. The global nursing shortage cannot be solved simply by encouraging more people to enter the profession, according to a new evidence brief.
8 Sept	Overworked, understaffed Gisborne ED staff strike Health and safety concerns arising from unsafe staffing levels have forced nurses at Gisborne Hospital’s emergency department (ED) to go on strike.
4 Sept	Strong growth in wāhine Māori and Pacific women’s cervical screening rates highlights success of self-testing programme Cervical screening participation has increased significantly for both wāhine Māori and Pacific women, reflecting the strong impact of self-testing, Screening Services and the dedicated efforts of health providers working alongside their communities.
4 Sept	Government must adopt Wai 2713 recommendations on disability system The Coalition Government must urgently adopt new recommendations from the Waitangi Tribunal which has found significant parts of the disability system prejudice tāngata whaikaha Māori (Māori with disabilities), NZNO says.
31 Aug	Employing graduate nurses will help keep them in nursing and the country A new proposal that will require Te Whatu Ora to offer all eligible graduate nurses jobs in the public health system will help keep them in nursing and in Aotearoa New Zealand, NZNO says.
26 Aug	Health Minister’s claim Winter Plan ‘managing well’ delusional Health Minister Simeon Brown’s claim that hospitals are ‘managing well’ because of the Government’s Winter Plan is delusional, NZNO says.
25 Aug	Hospital data shows nursing shortages continue to put patients at risk Te Whatu Ora data released today shows patients are continuing to be put at risk by the Coalition Government’s deliberate failure to safely staff hospital wards, NZNO says.
24 Aug	Fed-up North Shore ED staff declare state of emergency NZNO members working in the emergency department (ED) at North Shore Hospital have declared a state of emergency due to unsafe staffing levels resulting in ongoing overcrowding.
19 Aug	What happened to the winter health plan? The $25 million 2026 Winter Plan launched by Health Minister Simeon Brown in March to erase pressure on the health system has been an unmitigated disaster, Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa NZNO says.
11 Aug	Applications open for advanced nursing education programmes Health New Zealand is encouraging registered nurses to apply for two advanced education programmes that support nurses to further develop their clinical skills and expand access to care in communities across New Zealand.
3 Aug	Health New Zealand welcomes settlement of NZRDA collective agreement Health New Zealand welcomes the vote by New Zealand Resident Doctors Association (NZRDA) members to settle their collective agreement.
30 Jul	Backing our frontline rural health workforce Rural communities across New Zealand will benefit from three new investments that will support the rural health workforce and help more people access care closer to home, Associate Health Minister Matt Doocey says.
22 Jul	Te Whatu Ora must disclose staffing levels at time of tragic death Te Whatu Ora must disclose whether the Waikato emergency department (ED) was short-staffed at the time a man tragically died in the waiting room, NZNO says.
6 Jul	Reflecting on IND 2026 Looking back on last month’s International Nurses Day 12 May 2026 (IND 2026), the impact of this year's theme "Our Nurses. Our Future. Empowered Nurses Save Lives" continues to resonate across the world. ICN’s landmark IND 2026 report defined seven key powers of nursing and this message has been strengthened with nurses in every region celebrating, naming, and owning their powers throughout May.
3 Jul	Health New Zealand acknowledges Ombudsman statement on Wakari Ward 10A Health NZ welcomes the independent investigation by the Ministry of Health into Ward 10A. On Wednesday the Health NZ board agreed to close Wakari Ward 10a as a forensic intellectual disability (ID) unit, with the future use of the ward yet to be determined.
2 Jul	New programme to fast track bowel cancer care and cut colonoscopy waitlists Health New Zealand is today launching a national initiative, designed to fast track bowel cancer care and reduce colonoscopy waitlists by up to 30 per cent.
1 Jul	Six new Co-Response Team locations announced to strengthen support for people in mental distress The next six locations for Health New Zealand and NZ Police Co-Response Teams have been confirmed, expanding a model that helps people experiencing mental distress receive timely, wraparound support that better meets their health needs.
29 Jun	Mental health and addiction targets progress continues Health New Zealand continues to make important progress against its mental health and addiction targets, meeting four out of five national targets this quarter.
25 Jun	Access to care continuing to improve across a range of health indicators New health data released today shows continued improvement in access to care across a range of health indicators.
18 Jun	Funding "boost" continues dangerous under-funding of aged care The Health Minister’s funding "boost" for aged residential care continues underfunding to the sector and will continue unsafe practices and short staffing, which is putting vulnerable residents at risk, NZNO says.
16 Jun	Labour to make maternity scans free Labour will add free maternity scans to the Medicard alongside three free doctor’s visits a year, so every pregnant woman gets the care she needs.