Unfair criticism of aged-care staff.As an NZNO NZNO New Zealand Nurses Organisation member, a registered nurse and a rest-home operator, I was very concerned by the article "Staffing levels in aged care below Ministry guidelines guidelines, n.pl a set of standards, criteria, or specifications to be used or followed in the performance of certain tasks. " (Kai kai Noun NZ informal food [Maori] kai noun N.Z. (informal) food, grub (slang) provisions, fare, board, commons, eats (slang Tiaki Nursing New Zealand New Zealand (zē`lənd), island country (2005 est. pop. 4,035,000), 104,454 sq mi (270,534 sq km), in the S Pacific Ocean, over 1,000 mi (1,600 km) SE of Australia. The capital is Wellington; the largest city and leading port is Auckland. , October October: see month. 2005, p7). The headline suggests the whole industry is non compliant. The sample was of 40 facilities in an industry comprising 828 facilities nationwide, ie 4.8 percent of the total. This is hardly an academic or scientific sample. There are a great many operators who operate well within these guidelines because they wish to provide best possible care and services to their clients and staff, not because they are to be legislated. As an advocate for nursing, I am also concerned this headline not only condemns operators but condemns the nursing staff who are doing a fantastic job. I appreciate the purpose of the study (and the article) is to highlight the staffing/wages crisis in the industry, but the people who read this are not always those who have the power to change things. Please use useful scientific data and continue to target the district health boards--not your own members. Angela Taylor, RN, Northlond NZNO organising services manager Cee Payne-Marker replies: The study is clearly described in the article as " a snapshot (1) A saved copy of memory including the contents of all memory bytes, hardware registers and status indicators. It is periodically taken in order to restore the system in the event of failure. (2) A saved copy of a file before it is updated. study of actual staffing on a single day". The purpose was to check out whether the Government's claim that "most providers already work within recommended staffing levels" was correct and that its staffing indicators were being adhered to voluntarily. The conclusions of the study, which was taken over one day, clearly show the voluntary system is not working. This reinforces NZNO's position that legally binding nurse and caregiver care·giv·er n. 1. An individual, such as a physician, nurse, or social worker, who assists in the identification, prevention, or treatment of an illness or disability. 2. staffing levels are needed across the sector. NZNO intends using this information to lobby Government and aged-care employers for increased staffing and funding for the sector. The study in no way condemns the staff for the work they do. On the contrary, it shows just how hard they are having to work in the face of continuing staff shortages and under-resourcing. |
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