Want to Thank a Nurse or Midwife For Exceptional Care? You Can Nominate Them For a NSW Health Award

BY SAMUEL BARTLETT

Nominations are now open for Hunter Nurses and Midwives who are eligible for the Healing Heart Award at this year's NSW Health Excellence in Nursing & Midwifery Awards.

Patients, families and carers can nominate a nurse or midwife who showed exceptional care during their stay and they will be awarded at this year's ceremony in November.

Elizabeth Grist the Executive Director of Clinical Services and Nursing and Midwifery in the Hunter New England Local Health District, says the award honours those who made a significant impact by going above and beyond.

Ms Grist says, “The Healing Heart Award is a chance for the people of Hunter New England Health to extend their heartfelt thanks to the best in our professions."

Corona-virus fears put the ceremony on hold but the event is set to go ahead online in November.

NSW Chief Nurse and Midwife Officer says “The awards are a highlight of our calendar, but this year instead of a live event held in Sydney, we will be broadcasting the show to the nurses and midwives wherever they are in NSW with a virtual format in November,”

“We will create an awards show experience that will be special, unforgettable and quite specific to the extraordinary year we’re all experiencing” Ms Cross says.

The awards also carry special significance in 2020, which is the international year of the nurse and midwife.

Nominations for Nurses and Midwives close on the 27th of July and can be made on the NSW Health website at health.nsw.gov.au/nursing/enma

Photo from NSW Health

Newcastle University Nursing Students to Support Health System During Corona-virus Pandemic

BY KEELY JOHNSON

Medical and Nursing students in their final year at the Universality of Newcastle are preparing to support health care workers deal with the Corona-virus pandemic, as unprecedented strain on the industry continues to increase.

Students were set to undergo clinical placement this week, however, they have since been put on hold.

General Secretary of the NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association, Brett Holmes, says whilst tertiary students will provide a much-needed helping hand, as demand on the health system in Hospitals and aged-care facilities continues to rise, registered nurses should be employed first.

"We do call upon the Hunter New England local health district to make sure that it has employed as many of our qualified nurses as possible, before they start using students out of the University," says Mr Holmes.

"When students are necessary to bring into the system, we want to make sure they are appropriately placed in safe work place situations... We want to ensure where necessary they are provided with all levels of personal protective equipment that they need to stay safe."

 Students that are willing, will have the chance to provide a helping hand in the front-line, completing tasks such as staffing fever clinics, taking temperatures and bathing at Hunter hospitals.

Mr Holmes says assurances need to be made, students will be supervised and supported throughout their shifts, and believes they should be paid for the valuable work they perform.

"We believe they should be employed and paid for this work. Like every worker, they are putting their life at some risk and deserve to be paid for it," he says.

"This is a unique situation where we need to utilize additional staff but we do need to make sure they're safe, their practice is safe and that we can deliver the best possible care in these extraordinary situation."

Concerns have been raised over the availability of masks within the health care system, an issue Mr Holmes says his organisation is sending strong messages to the Ministry of Health about.

"That is an issue which is under constant attention, and we will continue to advocate for our members around the proper provision of personal protective equipment," he says.

"There are masks available, they're just made available on a limited basis. Many people are concerned about the fact this disease is contagious before its symptomatic, which puts many people working in the health system on edge."

"We would appeal to people to not steal masks and sanitizer out of our health system, which is an unfortunate reality that our members have experienced."

Image Credit: University of Newcastle 

UPDATE: Nurses Take Industrial Action At John Hunter Hospital

BY IAN CROUCH and MADELAINE McNEIL

Medical Imaging nurses at the John Hunter Hospital have called off  a two-hour stop work meeting.

The decision follows a hearing in the NSW Industrial Relations Commission, after the Hunter New England Health District filed an urgent dispute against the action.

The Nurses and Midwives Association says both parties reached an agreement during this morning's hearing to continue consulting over the issue.

EARLIER:


Nurses from the John Hunter Hospital's Medical Imaging Department will hold a 2-hour stop work meeting from 9.00am on Thursday to discuss ongoing concerns about staffing, workloads and patient safety.

The Nurses and Midwives' Association says it's been raising these issues for years with Hunter New England Health and despite last minute talks, a mutual agreement could not be reached.

The Association says patients requiring emergency care will be treated, with one nurse to remain in the department while the industrial action is taking place.