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YesWeCare.nz campaign co-ordinator Simon Oosterman (left) and ED nurse Nico Woodward stand in front of the 200 life size cut-outs of health workers they allege are missing due to underfunding. They are pictured outside Ashburton Hospital, yesterday. PHOTO MEGAN GNAD 070317-MG-0007
Music tutor goes solo P5
NZ health care system ailing BY MEGAN GNAD
MEGAN.G@THEGUARDIAN.CO.NZ
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A national roadshow, highlighting the realities facing patients and health care professionals, stopped to campaign outside Ashburton Hospital, yesterday. YesWeCare.nz was set up as a workforce coalition for better health funding and includes 83,000 Kiwis working in health, their unions, ActionStation and the People’s Mental Health Review. Travelling the length of the country, they aim to tell personal patient stories, detail the pressures on staff and look at how this impacts New Zealanders. At the top of concerns were issues surrounding funding, waiting lists and mental health resourcing. Locally, the earlier closing of A&E GPs at 8pm, causing queues in the ED department, was also raised. Campaigners are travelling with life
size cut-outs of health workers they allege are missing in New Zealand, due to underfunding, all of which were lined up outside the hospital, yesterday. YesWeCare.nz campaign co-ordinator Simon Oosterman said there had been a lot of national talk about the housing crisis, but limited discussion around the “health crisis”. “This is not anti-DHB, it’s about funding,” he said. “The CDHB has got serious funding issues, but we think they are doing a wonderful job with what they have.” “Our goal is to talk to locals, collect stories and then talk to the government.” Oosterman, who works for The New Zealand Public Service Association, said a YesWeCare.nz Survey of 6000 health workers, found 90 per cent felt the health system doesn’t have the
staff and resource required to give New Zealanders the healthcare they need, when they need it. Auckland-based ED nurse Nico Woodward, has put his career on hold to travel with the roadshow. “A big part of nursing is advocacy for the New Zealand health service, as a whole,” he said. “Not being able to care for someone, when you know you could if you were staffed properly, is distressing. “Often, you can’t explain or spend quality facetime (with patients); we are getting absolutely slammed, working 12 hour shifts, and running from 7am to 7pm. “The big reason I jumped on board is to effect some change, it’s a funding issue.”
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