BY JACK SEYMOUR
Nurses and midwives have staged a rally outside Maitland Hospital this morning to call for better staffing conditions.
The one-hour demonstration included the hospital's night shift staff and workers on their rostered day off, as well as supporters from the community.
The walk-out comes after continued calls for change to working conditions for staff dating back eighteen months.
NSW Nurses and Midwives Association Maitland Branch Secretary Monique Murray says the dire conditions staff are facing could have a serious impact on the community needing to receive care.
"It's the community unfortunately who will also suffer from this. They're the ones who are coming to our hospitals needing our care when they're at their most vulnerable," she said.
"If our nurses are struggling to deliver that care then it flows down to our patients. It has a worse outcome for their health, it extends their hospital stay and they're not getting their needs met...because they just haven't got the capacity."
The rally had no impact on the day's hospital services.
