Cape York Nurses Start Bans

Date: 22 April 2002

Queensland Nurses Union (QNU) members working in health care facilities on Cape York will start work bans today in protest at the ongoing understaffing and under-resourcing of health services on the Cape.

About 50 nurses at Aurukun, Coen, Kowanyama, Lockhart River, Mapoon, Napranum, Pormpuraaw and Weipa Hospital will:

· cease all Chronic Disease Audit activities;
· cease all Accreditation related activities; and
· restrict all operationally-related paperwork such as non-entry of data on the Health Register, admission forms, Medical Benefits Scheme forms, and Patient Travel Scheme forms.

The nurses will also claim payment for all required overtime, including when they are on-call on rostered days off and for after-hours clinical activities. Further bans will be implemented in the future if Queensland Health does not take action to:

· provide appropriate nursing staff levels;
· ensure nurses receive their award entitlements, such as adequate holidays and professional development leave;
· ensure new health care strategies, such as the Chronic Disease Strategy, are properly resourced; and
· properly maintain health care facilities and nurses' accommodation on the Cape.

QNU secretary, Gay Hawksworth, said staffing levels are an ongoing problem on Cape York and up to two extra nurses are currently needed in each centre so that rosters can be filled and nurses can get decent breaks.

"At present the nurses are nearly always on call and this is just not sustainable. It is also important that new health care strategies introduced on the Cape are properly resourced.

"For example, the Chronic Disease Strategy, is fully supported by the nurses, but they just don't have the resources to carry it out. This program is aimed at the early detection of chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and renal failure, which are endemic in Cape York communities. However, it involves extensive monitoring of the medical history of individuals and is very time consuming. There are simply not sufficient nurses to do it," Ms Hawksworth said.

Cape York nurses will meet with local Queensland Health officials via teleconference at 3.30pm tomorrow (Monday 22 April) to again discuss staffing, resource and maintenance issues in the eight communities.

For further information

Contact:	John Moran
Union:	Labor Council of NSW
Phone:	07-3366 9010
Contact Mobile:	0410-603 278

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