The Rockliff minority Government's failure to employ enough nurses is seeing patient care put at risk.
Budget estimates revealed that nursing overtime hours cost $25.9 million to May 23. That money could be better spent hiring new nurses to take the pressure off the existing workforce.
Labor understands nurses are being asked to work double shifts, which then creates shift shortages in the following days and has resulted in an overreliance on agency nurses to fill the gaps, which also costs the health budget dearly.
Emily Shepherd and the ANMF have been raising these issues with the Liberal minority Government for some time, but there were no solutions funded in the budget.
The part time Minister for Health, Jeremy Rockliff, has failed to demonstrate he has a plan to address recruitment and retention across our health workforce and this situation is only going to get worse.
A Labor Government is committed to health workforce development and we will ensure all the health policies we announce are backed with genuine workforce attraction and retention measures.
Labor will provide training through the Rural Health Workforce Centre and pay the HECs debt of 150 workers who agree to work in regional areas of Tasmania for three years.
We will employ 36 more nurses (enrolled and registered), 90 nurse practitioners and 5 Clinical Nurse Educators across our district hospitals and regional health centres, taking pressure off the state's four main hospitals and their emergency departments.
This will help to reduce bed block and ambulance ramping while leading to better patient outcomes and care closer to home.
Importantly, Labor has a plan to start repairing the health system and take pressure of our nursing workforce. If after 10 years the Liberals haven't fixed it they never will.
Anita Dow MP
Shadow Minister for Health
