‘They’re Worth Every Cent’

NURSES are working harder for their money these days — and they deserve every cent, says Wellington Hospital staff nurse Marie Habowska.

Ms Habowska, who has worked in Wellington’s neo-natal unit for 10 years, said yesterday’s settlement — particularly the emphasis on work-life balance — would help with recruitment and retention problems.

“We are an aging workforce, and we must do everything we can to encourage young people into the profession and keep them till they get the experience to replace the ones who are retiring.”

She had never encountered resentment from non-nursing colleagues about pay increases. “Nurses are working harder for their money, and I think the public would agree they’re worth every cent.”

However, the settlement comes too late for one Kiwi nurse who has joined the exodus across the Tasman. Natasha Colbourne said the “unsustainable workload” at Wellington Hospital’s emergency department was putting staff under intolerable pressure.

She returned to Wellington last April after several years working in Australia, drawn in part by Wellington’s reputation as a first- rate teaching hospital.

When she started, workloads were heavy but manageable. But with the onset of winter, huge numbers of patients began swamping the department. “It’s really patient-focused, which is fantastic, but sometimes staff don’t appear to be part of the equation,” Ms Colbourne said.

Senior nurses were so stressed they did not have the time to support new graduates and staff members, who were often simply used as “an extra set of hands” instead of being taught the skills they needed.

“I felt frustrated that I couldn’t do the job I want to do . . . You get bizarre full-on situations in the ED, matters of life and death, and you’re expected to brush that off and jump straight back into the black hole.

“I don’t know how they expect people to keep going.”

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