Why Qld nurses are in revolt

BY ROBYN MARSHALL

For the first time in many years Queensland nurses are taking industrial
action to demand conditions in the public hospitals change once and for
all.

A nurse employed at the Royal Brisbane Hospital (RBH), who wished to
remain anonymous, spoke to Green Left Weekly about the conditions
faced by nurses in Queensland's public hospitals.

“The workloads are quite horrendous”, she said. “There is no paid overtime.
We are just expected to manage with all the changes in the health and hospital
systems that are taking place. It is particularly bad at RBH because we
are also moving to a new hospital but there is no further assistance to
help to organise the move. There is a huge amount of extra work involved,
which cuts into normal everyday work. So either the normal work does not
get done or it is done poorly.”

Under pressure from governments, hospital managements have changed their
goals due to severe budget restraints. There is strong demand to push patients
through as quickly as possible, pressuring nurses to begin and finish all
procedures in only 24 hours. “Care has to be provided in that acute phase.
This requires a huge amount of knowledge. So the work is more complex and
demanding and very different. There is not a lot of time allocated to deal
with the patient.”

In addition, the nature of the work done by nurses in operating theatres
has changed. “It is more complicated, there are many changes in procedures,
there is more technology. However there is no time to learn about new equipment
and procedures.”

Registered nurses who have just graduated need two years training to
become fully proficient in peri-operative nursing. There are training programs,
but experienced nurses have to supervise newer nurses on the job. So a
nurse with eight years experience could still be on Level 1 out of a total
of five levels (the fifth being director of nursing). “The contribution
of an experienced nurse is ignored, so career progression is difficult
and not really enticing because of the total lack of financial incentive
for nurses to work at higher levels.

“Because of the workload, nurses don't get to meal breaks. In operating
theatres, if the nurse is scrubbed up, you can't get someone to relieve
you quickly. It is easier to keep working rather than take a meal break.
It is a very physically demanding job as well as mentally and psychologically;
there is a great deal of stress. Going without breaks all day, every day,
in the end nurses just walk away. You just can't keep going like this,
without support and a change in working conditions.”

In 2000, there was a government task force on nursing which identified
the problem of high turnover of nurses and made a number of recommendations
to overcome the problems, none of which were implemented.

“I would have expected more from a Labor government. In the past Labor
brought in changes to the Workplace Health and Safety Act. Now the ALP
is emulating the National-Liberal Party government. I have absolutely no
faith in [health minister] Wendy Edmonds. I think she should resign. She
has no understanding of the professional aspects of nursing. Her comment
is appalling.”

This was a reference to a statement made by Edmonds on June 26, that
suggested the nurses dispute was caused by graduate nurses being too educated
and not wanting to empty vomit buckets or wipe patients' bums.

“We are very determined to win because this is a crucial time for nurses.
We want to go home at the end of the day and feel we have done a good job.
Now we go home feeling frustrated because of the pressures of time and
the lack of meal breaks. Nurses leave the profession by the time they are
in their 40s, as shown by the statistics. No one in nursing enjoys their
work now.”

From Green Left Weekly, July 3, 2002.

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From GLW issue 498