Whakatāne Hospital: Adult wards already 'absolutely full' before Auckland border opened

Whakatāne Hospital nurses are already doing extra shifts and working over-time, New Zealand Nurses Organisation organiser Selina Robinson says. Photo / NZME

Adult wards at Whakatāne Hospital are already "absolutely full", causing "huge concern" about the Auckland border opening, a nurses union representative says.

New Zealand Nurses Organisation Bay of Plenty organiser Selina Robinson said nurses at Whakatāne Hospital were already doing extra shifts, working overtime and feeling "very under the pump".

There were also "well over 100" vacancies for "predominantly registered nurses".

"The adult wards where people would go are absolutely full and we know that there are high vacancies across the Bay of Plenty District Health Board."

She acknowledged the DHB was doing "the best that they can to be prepared", but it was still "a huge concern".

As of Wednesday, Auckland residents could travel outside of the region's boundary for the first time since the country went into alert level 4 lockdown on August 17.

New Zealand Nurses Organisation organiser Selina Robinson. Photo / Supplied

"There'll be more people coming, no doubt, and spreading whatever they have so, yes, there is a huge concern on an already expended nursing capacity.

"It's not a nice place to be when there are all these other stresses going on including short-staffing."

Recruiting new nurses would also be "difficult" because there were not enough experienced nurses to help train them, she said.

It would also be "very difficult" if nurses could not work because they had caught Covid-19.

"They'll be losing nurses from time to time because they may catch Covid themselves."

Dr Charlotte Chambers from the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists said any surge in Covid admissions would further expose staffing deficits which was "worrying", especially for those working in regional or smaller centres.

"Our doctors and nurses are stretched dealing with busy wards and emergency departments, while at the same time juggling entrenched staffing shortages – that's well before any Covid cases are added to the mix."

Dr Charlotte Chambers from the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists. Photo / Supplied

Bay of Plenty District Health Board Covid-19 incident controller Trevor Richardson said the pandemic had "stretched health services globally", and while the local health service faced this challenge, it had the advantage of learning from the world on how to tackle it.

The DHB was working through several ways to support staff and grow its capacity, he said.

Some ways included increasing senior nursing roles to support less experienced staff, offering healthcare professional students holiday employment work and providing additional training to healthcare assistances to increase the breadth of support they could offer.

"We also have the advantage of a vaccination programme that puts us in a stronger position to fight the virus.

"Despite the pressures we are facing, we have a fabulous team across our hospitals and community who continue to demonstrate their commitment to excellent care. I would like to acknowledge and thank them for the exceptional work they continue to put in day after day."

Richardson said the DHB was preparing for an "as yet, unknown volume of healthcare demand".

"As part of that preparation we are working closely with our community care providers to support in-home care where this is appropriate.

"Hospital plans and wider healthcare sector plans are in place to manage the expected volume of holidaymakers, and any increase in healthcare that may be required due to potential cases of Covid in our communities."

Bay of Plenty District Health Board Covid-19 incident controller Trevor Richardson. Photo / George Novak

There was a "well-developed national protocol" which would guide decisions on Covid-19 cases who could be managed in the community and who was admitted for hospital care, he said.

The DHB would also look for support from iwi providers around the most appropriate care for Māori communities.

Richardson said the DHB was "continuously developing" its infrastructure during the Covid-19 response.

This included improving facilities so testing sites could be stood up "at speed", and strengthening relationships with Māori providers recognising that Covid hit vulnerable populations such as Māori and Pacific Island communities "the hardest".

Richardson highlighted the "tremendous collaboration" in the healthcare sector during the Covid-19 response, and assured Bay of Plenty residents of the "huge collective effort" that was under way to keep them "as safe as possible".

Te Puna Ora o Mataatua chief operational officer Lee Colquhoun said the influx to the region was "about to start" now the Auckland border had opened.

"This is a big incentive for us to continue in this mahi to ensure our whānau Māori are protected if we are having visitors coming to the region during the summer holiday period."

In the Eastern Bay of Plenty, the "reality" was there would not be enough hospital beds so whānau would be isolating at home, he said.

Colquhoun said its response to Covid-19 resurgence had to be Whānau Ora-led, which would take "a lot of collaborative work" with communities to find out how to best manage whānau self-isolating.

Te Manu Toroa chief executive Pat Cook. Photo / Supplied

Te Manu Toroa chief executive Pat Cook said its focus would be on preparing its teams for supporting Covid-positive patients and whānau who would be isolating at home.

"We want to be as best prepared as we can so that we can be there to support all of our community."