Ward 2A nurses to stop work over unsafe staffing and pressure to open additional beds

WHAT: ANMF Media Call
WHERE: Royal Hobart Hospital, Campbell Street Entrance
WHEN: Friday 2 October
TIME: 2:00pm

Special Note: ANMF Tasmanian Branch Secretary Emily Shepherd and ANMF members will be available for a media interview.

The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation Tasmania Branch is supporting nurses and working on Ward 2A at the Royal Hobart Hospital in their industrial action as they undertake a 20-minute stop work action from 2:00 – 2.20pm today, Friday 2 October, to raise public awareness of the pressures they say they are being placed under to open additional beds without adequate nursing resources.

The action follows an ongoing workload grievance raised by nurses on the ward regarding the direction to open additional bed spaces above the ward’s endorsed staffing benchmark without corresponding nursing resources.

ANMF Tasmanian Branch Secretary Emily Shepherd said nurses were concerned that the current approach was placing additional pressure on an already stretched workforce.

“Nurses on Ward 2A are saying very clearly that they cannot continue to be directed to open additional beds when there are not enough nurses to safely care for the additional patients,” Ms Shepherd said.

“This is not about nurses refusing to care for patients. It is about ensuring there are enough nurses with the right skills and resources to provide safe and quality patient care.”

Members have continued to record shifts where additional beds have been opened without additional nursing resources.

In August, members reported:

• 10 night shifts with two additional beds open and no additional nursing resources;
• 2 morning shifts with two additional beds open without additional nursing resources; and
• 4 late shifts with two additional beds open without additional nursing resources.

In September, members reported that additional bed space continued to be opened, with additional nursing resources not consistently provided across AM, PM and night shifts.

The nurses have escalated their workload grievance to Step Two and are seeking a specialist panel to address the ongoing concerns.

Infection control concerns remain

Nurses are also raising concerns about infection prevention and control measures associated with the use of the additional bed spaces.

Despite these concerns being raised previously, members say they remain unresolved.

Ward 2A members report that infection control issues have directly affected patient safety, including concerns about the spread of infection within the ward.

Ms Shepherd said infection prevention and control must be treated as a fundamental part of safe staffing and patient care.

“Nurses should not have to repeatedly raise concerns about infection control and patient safety and then continue working in circumstances where they believe those concerns have not been adequately addressed.

“The Department needs to listen to the nurses who are working at the bedside and address these concerns before asking them to continue taking on additional patients.”

ANMF calls for safe staffing ratios

The ANMF is calling on the Tasmanian Government and Department of Health to establish legislated, enforceable and appropriate nurse-to-patient ratios so that situations where nurses are expected to absorb additional patients without adequate staffing do not continue.

“This is exactly why Tasmania needs safe staffing ratios,” Ms Shepherd said.

“When demand increases, there needs to be a clear and enforceable mechanism to ensure staffing increases with patient numbers and workload.”

“Nurses should not be placed in the position of having to fight shift by shift to ensure there are enough nurses to safely care for the patients in front of them and risk their own health and wellbeing as well as losing their colleagues due to burn out and moral injury.”

-End-

Media contact:
Emily Shepherd, ANMF Tasmanian Branch Secretary
Mobile: 0400 884 021
Email: Emily.Shepherd@anmftas.org.au