COFFS Coast nurses and midwives took strike action, along with colleagues across NSW, on September 1.

Approximately 100 nurses and midwives attended a stop work rally in Coffs Harbour in support of nurse-to-patient ratios and better working conditions and to draw attention to the issues confronting nursing staff in our region.

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Amanda Bailey Derrett, Secretary of the Coffs Harbour Branch of the NSW Nurses and Midwives Association (NSWNMA) said, “I was heartened to see the number of our members who turned up to voice their concerns and fight for better care for our patients.

“I was also really pleased with the amount of community support we have received, ranging from members of the public attending our rally to the really strong support we received from passing motorists.

“It is clear that the community is with us in wanting safe levels of staffing in our hospitals.”

Ms Bailey Derrett explained the key demand from nurses and midwives was improved staff to patient ratios.

“In Victoria and Queensland there are mandated nurse to patient ratios which ensure that there are always enough nurses to provide quality care for patients,” she said.

Ms Bailey Derrett said when nurses are stressed and overworked, patient needs are not met, mistakes happen and patients suffer.

She said research has shown that mandated ratios actually save lives, citing a study in Queensland, where ratios were implemented in 2016, which found the measure had saved 145 lives.

She said the study also found that there were fewer readmissions and fewer hospital days for patients, saving money as well as lives.

Ms Bailey Derrett said, “We are calling for one nurse for every three patients in Emergency, one to four on other
wards and one midwife to three mums and three babies in maternity.”

Nurses will still be stretched and busy, she said, but they will be able to offer the sort of individual care that
patients need and deserve.

“The NSW Government should not see hiring additional nurses as a cost, but as an investment in the health of everyone who needs hospital care,” she said.

Ms Bailey Derrett said that nurses are at the end of their tether.

“The constant stress and exhaustion that comes from working in an understaffed ward is wearing our members down,” she said.

She said nurses are getting sick, they are working too much overtime and, in too many cases, they are leaving the profession, making the problem worse.

“People who would otherwise consider nursing as a career are being discouraged by the prospect of working in a stressed, exhausting environment.

“Where will the next generation of nurses come from?”

City of Coffs Harbour Councillor Tony Judge also addressed the meeting as a concerned citizen and father of a nursing student.

“The NSW Government called nurses the heroes of the pandemic and praised their work in saving lives, but when it came to doing something practical to help them, through mandated ratios, better conditions or a pay rise, they suddenly found other priorities for our money,” he said.

Cr Judge said nurses deserve more than a pat on the head and praise – they need a safe working environment and decent working conditions.

“It’s not in our interests as a patient to have overworked, distracted nurses.

“The NSW Government needs to fund enough staff to do the job safely and provide quality care,” he said.

“Nurses have been waiting a long time for mandated patient ratios, way too long, and there’s no end in sight.”

Ms Bailey Derrett said, “This will not be the last stop work meeting – unless there is a change of mind by the Government, we need to keep demanding safe staffing through ratios.

“It’s what our patients deserve.”

By Andrew VIVIAN