Staff at John Hunter Hospital are being pushed to the limit, with there being not enough nurses to keep up with the record number of admissions.
In 2016, there was a total of 132 confirmed cases of Influenza A and B admitted for care. This number has risen dramatically to 156 during the past year.
While additional beds were provided to support the growing number of admissions, additional staff were not put on.
The low levels of staff has resulted in many nurses being forced to work overtime, often unpaid.
NSW Nurses and Midwives Association (NSWNMA) General Secretary Brett Holmes says unless staff numbers increase, it could jeopardise patient care.
"Clearly patients are missing out when short staffing situations occur, and when there are poor skill mix situations," he said. "That's the use of under-qualified staff to replace the registered nurses and enrolled nurses as a stopgap measure to try and keep those additional beds open, and that means of course some patients aren't getting the highest levels of care they deserve."
Brett Holmes says members of the NSWNMA will be meeting to next week to find a solution to the problem.
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| Source: National Blood Authority |
