Andrew Dickens Afternoons

The nurses deal continues to reverberate on.So to recap the nurses were given a pay increase and an extra $38 million for 500 more nurses. So yesterday, the discussion was on where we could find these 500 nursesBringing nurses back to New Zealand was one idea. Health boards' spokesman Jim Green suggested, to boost staffing numbers, alongside getting those who had left the profession to return, getting more new-graduates, and getting others from elsewhere in healthcare.So let’s look at that. Getting others from elsewhere in healthcare is robbing Peter to pay Paul. Already we’ve heard of aged care staff returning to nursing for more money. Now that might be good for nursing but it’s a blow for aged care which is already in its own staffing crisis.Getting new graduates means enrolling more students. It might happen but there will be a considerable time lag before they come on stream. Plus there will have to be more investment in training capacity which I’m not sure is budgeted forGetting those who have left the