April 2022 – Kaitiaki Nursing New Zealand

May 2022

‘Tired but passionate’ caregiver on life inside aged residential care through the pandemic

By a Northland health-care assistant

April 28, 2022

After 31 years in aged residential care, a caregiver calls for mental health support.

May 2022

High Court upholds vaccination mandate for health workers

By Mary Longmore

April 28, 2022

A High Court ruling upholding the COVID-19 vaccination mandate for health workers shows the courts view it as “justified limitation” on individuals’ rights to refuse medical treatment, NZNO employment lawyer Jock Lawrie says.

May 2022

Fresh meetings launched ahead of May decision on pay equity deal for DHB members

By Mary Longmore

April 21, 2022

NZNO has launched a fresh batch of online meetings ahead of a May 1-8 member survey on whether to accept a pay equity proposal or refer it to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA).

September 2022

Cardiovascular disease — tackling medication adherence

By Jim Vause

April 14, 2022

Managing patients’ CVD risk, medication non-adherence, and improving communication with patients: This article has particular relevance to primary care nurses, including those specialising in long-term conditions, and to cardiac care educators.

May 2022

Medical exemption process for mandates ‘not fair’

By Maria Starink

April 14, 2022

Over the last 25-plus years, nursing has been intellectualised.

May 2022

Don’t give us coffee machines, give all nurses more pay for extra shifts

By Teresa Smith

April 14, 2022

I’d like the chance to tell you how things are for us in my workplace, acute services: the emergency department (ED) and high dependency unit (HDU) of a small rural hospital.

May 2022

Kaitiaki Nursing New Zealand now free to all NZNO students

By Mary Longmore

April 14, 2022

NZNO student leaders say they are “beyond excited” by a decision to allow free access for all student members to NZNO’s online nursing journal Kaitiaki Nursing New Zealand.

May 2022

NZNO says proposed pay equity settlement contrary to Equal Pay Act

By Joel Maxwell

April 14, 2022

NZNO says a legal review of the recently proposed nursing pay equity settlement has concluded it is contrary to the Equal Pay Act 1972.

May 2022

Nurses must speak out on ‘sparse, inaccessible’ mental health care

By NZNO professional nursing advisor Anne Brinkman, with contributions from the Mental Health Nursing Section committee.

April 13, 2022

‘Silent epidemic’ in mental health across Aotearoa as families struggle in isolation.

May 2022

NZNO zoom meetings added for DHB members over pay equity agreement

By Mary Longmore and Joel Maxwell

April 12, 2022

Online meetings have launched today for NZNO district health board (DHB) members keen to find out more about a proposed pay equity settlement revealed last week.

April 2022

The slap that was heard around the world: when is violence acceptable?

By Joel Maxwell

April 8, 2022

It was the slap heard around the world, but for some it was entirely normal.

May 2022

Changes afoot on how IQN competence is assessed – Nursing Council

By Mary Longmore

April 7, 2022

“Significant changes” to how the competency of internationally-qualified nurses (IQNs) is assessed are being proposed by the Nursing Council, in a bid to ease barriers and boost cultural competency.

April 2022

Violence against nurses, HCAs, ‘normalised’ and left invisible in Aotearoa health system

By Joel Maxwell

April 6, 2022

Normalised aggression against nurses and an unwieldy reporting system have hidden the true level of violence against district health board staff, an NZNO project has found.

April 2022

NZNO farewells, thanks Bloomfield as a ‘pro’

By Mary Longmore

April 6, 2022

Outgoing director-general of health Ashley Bloomfield’s “guidance and stewardship” during the pandemic reduced pressure on the public health system at a challenging time for nurses, NZNO associate manager professional and nursing services Kate Weston says.

May 2022

The invisible hand of violence that goes unreported against nurses, HCAs, midwives

By Dana Hudson and Suzanne Rolls

April 6, 2022

A glaring discrepancy has emerged between real life nursing experiences of NZNO members and official district health board reports of workplace violence.

April 2022

‘Just don’t give up’: Decades-long journey sees Kate Te Pou become nurse practitioner

By Joel Maxwell

March 30, 2022

Kate Te Pou’s journey started with a childhood spent in hospitals, continued when she became a nurse in the ’80s – now after the “hardest year” of her study life, it’s taken a new turn.

August 2022

What makes a great preceptor? Nursing students have their say

By Stephanie Rooke, Grace Thevenard, Saumi Suthendran, Suyeon Skyla Jung, Nathalie Tolentino, Jamie Fraser Annandale and Kim Ward

March 28, 2022

Students chronicle their good and bad experiences with preceptors and give their view on how to perform the role well, to educate and inspire the next generation of nurses.

May 2022

NZ English test for Pacific-trained nurses too tough?

By Italia Tiffany Farani

March 28, 2022

My name is Italia. I am currently working as a health-care assistant in mental health.

May 2022

Better deals needed to encourage IQNs to work in NZ

By Ashly Mangalasseril

March 28, 2022

I am a registered nurse (RN) who completed the competency assessment programme (CAP) in May 2021. But I had to pay nearly NZ$12,000 to finish CAP. Travelling plus the OET (occupational English test) exam fee — all this adds up to huge amount.

May 2022

Health-care assistant plea over residency visa

By Sangita Shrestha

March 28, 2022

I am writing today to bring some issues to light.

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.