NSW Labor has obtained secret documents which reveal that the NSW Liberal National Government is failing to deliver on their promise from last election to hire additional nurses.
Where NSW should have had an additional 4,000 nurses and midwives in the system by June 2022, nurse hiring fell short by over 30 per cent – leaving a shortfall of over 1,200 nurses and midwives.
The bulk of this shortfall is in regional NSW, which is behind by more than 700 nurses and 98 midwives.
The failure to hire these additional nurses has meant that existing staff have been working overtime to fill the gaps. Nurses worked the equivalent of 1,596 additional FTE in overtime during the 2021-22 financial year. While this was during COVID it has left nurses feeling overworked and underappreciated.
Hospitals under pressure
Hospitals in NSW have been overwhelmed, under-resourced and severely neglected over the last decade.
- A quarter of patients waited longer than 30 minutes in the back of the ambulance outside emergency departments – and 10 per cent waited almost seven minutes.
- Once in the emergency department, half of patients triaged as critical did not start treatment on time, and one in 10 patients spent almost an entire 24 hours in the ED.
- Meanwhile over 66,000 patients simply left emergency without receiving or completing their treatment, and almost 18,000 patients were left sitting on the elective surgery waiting list longer than medically recommended.
Labor will start the long-term plan to redesign and repair the health system and deliver a fresh start for health in New South Wales. We’ve already announced:
- A commitment to mandating minimum and enforceable safe staffing levels in public hospitals. It will help with workloads; it will take pressure of nurses and ensure they can treat patients with the care they deserve and need.
- An additional 500 rural and regional paramedics in Labor’s first term.
- Returning 600 beds to Western Sydney after 365 were across NSW by the Liberals since 2016.
- Upgrades to Canterbury, Fairfield, Mount Druitt and Blacktown Hospitals and opening the new Eurobodalla Hospital at Level 4.
- A commitment to build Rouse Hill Hospital including an emergency department.
- Doubling the funding to 20 Women’s Health Centres across NSW, guaranteed for five years
Quotes attributable to Chris Minns, NSW Labor Leader:
“This is simply unfair on our hardworking healthcare professionals who are working in a system that is stretched to its limits.
“Residents right across NSW have been saying for a long time that they need to see additional staff in their local hospital. The existing staff do a fantastic job under the circumstances, but they are understaffed and under resourced.
“Our health system needs structural repair. If we are elected in March we are committed to taking urgent action. Labor has committed to mandating minimum and enforceable safe staffing levels in public hospitals.”
Quotes attributable to Ryan Park, NSW Shadow Minister for Health:
“The NSW Liberals have given up on their responsibility to deliver on their health promises. “This is another failed election commitment – along with the failure to deliver the Rouse Hill hospital they promised before the 2015 and 2019 elections.
“No wonder they are missing their targets in health – Dominic Perrottet can’t even tell the people of NSW who the Health Minister would be under a Liberal government.
“Labor has listened to nurses and midwives working in hospitals across our state. When you deliver decent and safe working conditions, health outcomes improve, the pressure comes off our hospitals, experienced staff stay in the system, and we’ll attract experienced staff back to work.”
CHRIS MINNS MP
NSW LABOR LEADER
RYAN PARK MP
NSW SHADOW MINISTER FOR HEALTH
