‘‘It has reached a point where it is hard to maintain patient safety.’’
That is the startling revelation from Deniliquin NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association branch spokesperson Rhonda Dixon as nurses again prepare to walk off the job in pursuit of more appropriate nurse to patient ratios.
Ms Dixon, who has been nursing for almost five decades, said local nurses are ‘‘just tired’’.
She said the nurse to patient ratio of 1:4 has been inadequate for many years, with no change despite repeated attempts to sway the NSW Government over many years.
And there is no formal ratio agreement in either maternity or emergency.
Coupled with staffing shortages, and exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic over the last two years, Ms Dixon said it’s not uncommon for some departments to be operating well over the desired ratios — at Deniliquin, and other hospitals around the state.
Ms Dixon said nothing short of better working conditions and improved incentives to aid in nurse recruitment will start to ease the pressures.
‘‘We were in trouble before COVID, but the pandemic has really exposed the cracks,’’ Ms Dixon said.
‘‘Tired is the key word. We’ve all been doing extra double shifts, and overtime, plus being on call.
‘‘And some nurses, like myself, will want to retire soon (but feel that we can’t).
‘‘It’s like putting out spot fires but not getting to the real cause.
‘‘With the shortages and issues with ratios, nurses are not able to complete their jobs properly.
‘‘They are having to make a decision on which buzzer to answer first, and they are dealing with family members who are upset about the level of care their loved ones are receiving.
‘‘But it is not the nurses’ fault.
‘‘The whole health system is a mess, and it’s not going to be an easy fix.’’
Ms Dixon said the staff shortage has been spurred on by the inadequate ratios, saying nurses across the state are resigning under extreme pressure.
Low pay rates do not help the situation, she said.
‘‘Graduates are not staying in the job because they are just so overwhelmed.
‘‘And we’re having a lot of trouble attracting agency nurses because they have been assigned to COVID-19 vaccination and testing clinics.
‘‘In our (Deniliquin’s) medical ward we’re doing okay, but that’s only because they have closed 10 beds at Deniliquin Hospital — and that’s supposedly only temporary.
‘‘Maternity and emergency have no nurse to patient formula at all, and emergency numbers have been skyrocketing over a number of years — partly because of the lack of access to doctors.
‘‘And from what we’re hearing it is a hell of a lot worse in Sydney.’’
Adding insult to injury, Ms Dixon said nurses were devastated when a 2.5 per cent pay increase was frozen by the government in 2020 — at the start of the pandemic and handed down by then premier Gladys Berejiklian on International Nurses Day.
Ms Dixon said the Victorian and Queensland governments have more appropriate nurse to patient ratios for improved healthcare, and have also introduced a COVID allowance.
The NSW Nurses and Midwives Association is now seeking similar commitments from the NSW Government.
Under a campaign with the catch cry of ‘Stop telling us to cope!’, the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association says the NSW Government has ‘‘ignored nurses and midwives and refused our requests for safe patient care, and our immediate calls for shift by shift nursing and midwifery ratios’’.
It also highlights that the premier’s announcements that elective surgery would soon resume would only place further strain on the health system.
‘‘The premier says the health system has capacity, that we’re coping. That is not true,’’ the association’s list of reasons for striking says.
‘‘Every shift we are confronted with short staffing, excessive workloads and are stretched what is beyond reasonable or safe to keep our health system functioning.
‘‘Enough is enough. The health system is not coping and is in crisis.’’
Local nurses have taken strike action for improved conditions four other times since 2011, in 2019, 2015, 2013 and 2011.
Ms Dixon said this strike makes the same demands as those before, and that the association will not be giving up.
‘‘These are tough times. This is the hardest I have done it in my years of nursing.
‘‘We’ll be walking out from 10am to 11am on Tuesday, and gathering at the Ute on the Pole.
‘‘And the union says this is just the beginning. It will not stop, and there could be rolling strikes if there is no change.’’