Podcasts about te whatu ora health nz

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon recently spoke to media saying that the government would announce reforms to the Holidays Act that would impact sick leave entitlements for part time workers. Under the suggested changes, sick leave entitlements would be processed under an accrual system, meaning that part-time workers working half the hours of their full-time counterparts may only earn half of their previously entitled sick leave. In that same week, a directive was recently given to Te Whatu Ora - Health NZ to give private hospitals 10-year outsourcing contracts to perform elective surgeries. And earlier this week Associate Education David Seymour announced a review of the funding for early childhood education. For our weekly Catchup with the Green Party, Oto spoke to MP Ricardo Menendez-March about all of these issues.

You've got to ask yourself who's running the show. There's been another example of bureaucracy seemingly undermining the government on its cost cutting plan which, remember, from outset they said wouldn't impact the front line.  A Health New Zealand manager has done a PowerPoint to 90 staff about upcoming changes, and they indicated that jobs could be cut including 470 doctors and 1400 nurses.  Who on earth thought that was okay?  Did they do it on purpose? Is it a middle finger to the government and to the Commissioner Lester Levy?  The truth is we don't really know at this point, Levy asks is this reluctance, is this resistance, or is this sabotage?  Fair question. He's promising consequences. It's totally unacceptable, but it's not an isolated incident.  Oranga Tamariki is another agency cutting funding left, right, and centre to services.  The stories get in the press and then there's a back down.  And we've had public service leaking against the government, loads of examples. At least six major leaks that I could recall.  There was a Cabinet paper on the foreign housing investors, also the treaty principles bill.  You can't know for sure the motivations in each case, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that there is huge resistance to the coalition government's agenda within pockets of the bureaucracy.  They need reining in, examples here need to be set.  And if the message falls on deaf ears, well, maybe they need to be marched out the door. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Karen Chhour has made public this week that she is experiencing a toxic workplace at Parliament in a very public show of emption. She was also on Tova O'Briens podcast this week and the Children's Minister abruptly ended the interview citing the questions were 'revolting' A few days ago it was very important for NZ to know that there are "14 layers of management" at Te Whatu Ora/Health NZ with the Government blaming the previous Government for a "bloated bureaucracy" but on this mornings Breakfast show Minister Chris Bishop seemed to indicate that the number if layers didn't really matter...even though they really did matter a few days ago as we still await this Government to demonstrate what those 14 layers are Donald Trump got combative with a reporter at the National Associate of Black Journalists (NABJ) convention who asked about his past racist comments during a conversation about 2024 election issues. It was a car crash in slow motion and we'll check it over tonight. ==================================== Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠ Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter. @patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Dr Jo Sinclair is an Anaesthetist with a career-long interest in doctors' health and wellbeing. In early 2020 she was appointed the Senior Medical Officer Wellbeing Lead at Te Whatu Ora Counties Manukau, and in that role has been instrumental in bringing Schwartz Rounds to the organisation and developing a Stress First Aid training programme. She was also the hospital lead for the Health Roundtable Workforce Wellbeing Improvement Group. In 2022, Jo was seconded into the role of Interim National Clinical Lead for Employee Wellbeing for Te Whatu Ora Health NZ. She works collaboratively with colleagues in the People and Communications Team to begin shifting the organisational culture to one that supports healthcare workers to thrive at work. In 2023, she attended the Stanford Chief Wellbeing Officer Course in San Francisco to further her capability in this area. Jo has undertaken additional training in coaching and mentoring, critical incident stress management, leadership and communication. She is an Associate Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Medical Administrators and has been co-chair of the ANZCA Wellbeing Special Interest Group.In this episode, Jo and I chatted about:Her leadership roles Her leadership style Her leadership journey The leaders that helped her rise The challenges she faced on her journey How she navigated those challenges How she thinks you can become a strong and kind leader Her ‘take home' leadership messages for the listeners, and What she is currently excited to be working on.Jo can be found and contacted via the following online platform addresses:Email: Joanna.Sinclair@middlemore.co.nzLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joanna-sinclair-92a8bb1b3/X (Twitter): https://x.com/josinclanz (@josinclanz)Please reach out to Dr Harrison for individual coaching and/or organisational training via dr.adam@coachingmentoringdoctors.com.His web address and social media profile links / handles include:www.dradamharrison.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/dradamharrison/www.youtube.com/c/DrAdamPhysicianCoachhttps://www.facebook.com/coachingmentoringdoctors/https://www.instagram.com/dradamharrison/

Questions are being raised as to where the blame lies for issues within Health New Zealand.  The board is being replaced with a commissioner as the agency was found to be overspending at the rate of around $130 million a month.  Back office staff numbers have increased significantly in recent years.  Former Health New Zealand Chair Rob Campbell told Mike Hosking there's a possibility the budget was never right from the start.  He suspects the original budgeting appropriations were never adequate, and it's been impossible to manage.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christopher Luxon is defending the time it's taken to step in and remove Health New Zealand's board.  Health Minister Shane Reti yesterday appointed the board's chair, Professor Lester Levy, as commissioner for a 12-month term. Only one board member was remaining after two others resigned and the rest chose not to serve another term.  Replacing the board with a commissioner comes after the organisation over-spent at the rate of about $130 million a month.  The Government had previously put a Crown Observer in before Christmas to monitor the organisation.  The Prime Minister told Mike Hosking he rejects any suggestion the Government has taken too long to intervene.  He says the Government has been acting quickly and needed sufficient information before making the decision to replace the board with a commissioner.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 23rd of July, the Health NZ board is so useless they're getting dumped for a commissioner.   The Prime Minister is back and gets a grilling on putting a commissioner in to manage our health system, and what we're going to do about electricity volumes in this country.  Long time friend of Joe Biden and former US Ambassador to New Zealand, Mark Gilbert tells us the next steps for the Democrats and how they go about trying to win this election now.  Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 23rd of July, Joe Biden is no longer seeking re-election and has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for the top job. U.S. election analyst Henry Olsen joins Ryan from the States to provide his thoughts.  Health NZ's board has been scrapped by the Government, replaced by a commissioner for the next year. Ryan speaks to the Residents Doctors Association.  A lifeline for the Interislander? A new report has found the 3 ships can run up until 2029, longer than expected. But the Maritime Union aren't happy with the results.  Get the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An internal investigation has confirmed a heavily pregnant woman aged in her 20s and her stillborn child died after the mother's admission to Palmerston North Hospital's intensive care unit was delayed, Te Whatu Ora Health NZ has released to Checkpoint a summary of its investigation. Reporter Jimmy Ellingham speaks to Lisa Owen.

Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora has implemented a freeze on hiring for all non-frontline roles – to bring down spending.   This will include all hospital roles that are not patient-facing, and all public health roles that are not community-facing.  Health New Zealand Chief People Officer, Andrew Slater, told Heather du Plessis-Allan “That pause is likely to be on as we enter July-August as well.”  Slater said “This pause will move the recruitment process back down to local hands.”  LISTEN ABOVE.     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The government will purchase an additional 9 million rapid antigen tests (RATs), extending freely available tests by three months.  Health Minister Shane Reti announced today that nearly $200m of the funding will go towards vaccines and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test processing.  Health Minister Shane Reti told Jack Tame “I believe Kiwis want to do the right thing and follow their isolations.”  Reti says “We want to get through this at-risk period. It peaks at mid-year and end-of-year.”  LISTEN ABOVE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A doctor at Palmerston North's Regional Cancer Treatment Service says it's holding on by the skin of its teeth.   Oncologist Richard Isaacs says Te Whatu Ora has not approved new staff, despite a 2022 review saying it needed significantly more.   He told Mike Hosking that the situation is just getting worse as more senior staff reduce their hours.   Isaacs says finances are blocking Te Whatu Ora from approving new staff.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are fears health worker strikes could become common place as conditions worsen.  Two and a half thousand resident doctors will strike next month over pay and conditions.  Former Health New Zealand chairman Rob Campbell told Mike Hosking that it could be the first of many more health worker strikes.  He said workers are feeling increasingly disaffected and unheard.  Campbell said that the agency needs to do better to prevent the strikes, it's not good management for the issue to be hashed out in public.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A former health boss believes there are too many managers at the helm of the Health Ministry.  Newstalk ZB can reveal the Ministry of Health considered trimming executive salaries but eventually landed on a job cutting proposal.  The ministry's looking at a net loss of 134 roles as the public service has been ordered to trim the fat by the Government.  Ex Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora Chair Rob Campbell told Mike Hosking that he believes management numbers will likely be whittled down.  But he says if you get the quality of what you do up, you don't need as many people.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The nurses union wants the new Health Minister to intervene on delays to payouts.  Te Whatu Ora owes nearly two billion dollars to nurses after failing to meet Holiday Act requirements, and its only paid roughly $250,000 back.  The union says the rest of the money, owed from 2010 onwards, has been pushed back.  Nurses Organisation President Kerri Nuku told Mike Hosking that they'll be writing to the minister.  She says deadlines keep getting pushed back and they want clarity.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Minister Dr Shane Reti wants to return more decision making to the regions.   The previous government scrapped district health boards, forming the central bodies of Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand and the Māori Health Authority.   General Practice New Zealand chair Dr Bryan Betty told Roman Travers that in a lot of areas there's a breakdown between Wellington and what's needed in the regions.   He says this is a reaction to that. It's not going back to the way it was but is a halfway point.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora is standing by its $100 million consultant spend.  This is despite it dropping from $139 million the year prior.  Chief People Officer Andrew Slater told the Mike Hosking Breakfast they've tightened where they're using contractors and consultants and are focusing on making sure they have the appropriate expertise.  He says it doesn't make sense to have some of these skills in house all the time.  Former Chair of Te Whatu Ora, Rob Campbell, says the consultant spend is still excessive. He joined Kerre Woodham to discuss the situation.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora is standing by its $100 million consultant spend.  Former boss Rob Campbell says the $102 million spent on consultants in the year to July is excessively high.  This is despite it dropping from $139 million the year prior.  Chief People Officer Andrew Slater told Mike Hosking that they've tightened where they're using contractors and consultants and are focusing on making sure they have the appropriate expertise.   He says it doesn't make sense to have some of these skills in house all the time.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Salvation Army is raising concern about a loss of support services for people suffering gambling harm.   The charity says Te Whatu Ora has rejected its bid for a contract renewal, despite providing gambling programmes for 31 years.   Social Services Director Lynette Hutson told Mike Hosking that they're not sure if the service will be replaced, but they suspect there will be fewer services available.  She said that there was no indication from Te Whatu Ora that their service was problematic and they were going to go another way.  Te Whatu Ora says it's not appropriate to comment,while it's in the process of requesting proposals to procure gambling harm services.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Chair of General Practice New Zealand says GP capacity issues are becoming a crisis. Te Whatu Ora Health NZ says an overloaded primary healthcare system is to blame for more children turning up at hospital. Bryan Betty says a third of GPs have closed their books, but most are trying to accommodate their base with acute on-the-day appointments, where parents of sick kids can try first. "If capacity is reached or something happens where you can't get in, then you'd need to go to an after-hours medical centre or you'd need to go to an ED if you are concerned, because the prime thing is the child." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora is blaming old tech for its failed payments.  Up to 10,000 nurses in Auckland, Waitemata, Counties Manukau, and Nelson have still to receive their pay rises.  The money was supposed to hit their accounts by September 27 at the latest.  Te Whatu Ora Chief People Officer Andrew Slater told Mike Hosking that the situation is a big frustration for their people, and for them.  He says many of the payroll systems that pay more than 90,000 people are out of date, and not up to the job  Slater's assuring people they will be paid by the end of this, and next month.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pay equity for care and support workers has been halted.  Te Whatu Ora's called for a review as the claim process nears the end, much to the disappointment of unions and employers.  Aged Care Association Chief Executive, Katherine Rich told Kate Hawkesby that she believes the health agency halted the process as the cost was more than anticipated.  She says they're calling foul as it impacts the most vulnerable and lowly-paid workers in the sector.  Te Whatu Ora says the review seeks further assurance on specific technical questions, and once answered they'll progress to the next stage.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Senior doctors and dentists are escalating their strike action. They have announced they will stop work for two full days in October as negotiations with Health NZ have stalled. There will be a 12 hour strike on October 2 and a 24 hour strike on October 24. Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists Sarah Dalton spoke with Heather about it. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you know what? I'm actually cross at Health NZ Te Whatu Ora for playing silly buggers with senior doctors and their pay. Things are serious right now. It is a serious thing for senior doctors to go on strike today, they've never done this before. And I can totally understand why- they must be at their wits end with the silly games Te Whatu Ora are playing to avoid paying doctors properly.  For a start, the health bosses misrepresented what the senior doctors actually get paid already. They said these doctors get, on average, $318,000 per year. But that is clearly not true. Check out the collective agreement online, the top pay is $250,000 and the median is $220,000.   Either way, it's a lot of money, but Te Whatu Ora Health NZ can let us make up our own minds with the honest facts instead of being dishonest. As well as that, they've misrepresented what they're offering the doctors. They said up to 12.9 percent, which sounds like a lot- but we found out that they dicked around with that number too, and it's not nearly that much. It's more like 5 percent, say the doctors.  The reason I'm cross about this is that we don't get the luxury of paying our doctors poorly in this country. Doctors can move, and if you pay them poorly- they're just going to go off to Australia. Particularly Victoria, where the lowest they can earn there is more than the highest they can earn here. My brother-in-law, a doctor, just left for Victoria. My neighbour, also a doctor, left a couple of years back. If the health bosses continue to play these games with our doctors and try to dick them around on pay, we will lose more. And we can't afford to, because we're already 1700 doctors short in this country. That means you and I will not get the healthcare we actually deserve because we pay our taxes for it. So instead of Health NZ using their 200 communications staff to figure out clever ways to make doctors look greedy, how about they find some money to pay doctors properly. And if they need to cut some of those back-office spin doctors who play slippery games to find the dollars, so be it. I'd rather have the doctors anyway.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Radio Hauraki's Matt Heath and Ben Thomas from Ben Thomas PR joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day- and more! ACT leader David Seymour has ruled out a partnership with NZ First and Winston Peters. Should Chris Luxon and National follow suit- or do they need to form a coalition? Police Minister Ginny Andersen has suggested wardens for Maori and other ethnicities could patrol more in the Auckland city centre to help the police. Is this proof Labour's running out of ideas? Health Minister Ayesha Verrall says new data released today shows the Government's targeted approach to waitlists is making a positive difference- can we trust that things are getting back on track? LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Saturday marked a year since the new heath system Te Whatu Ora kicked into gear. Twenty district health boards were abolished and replaced with a centralised system aimed at getting rid of our postcode lottery of health care.   A year ago, I wished the then Minister of Health Andrew Little good luck with his venture. Our health system had been under pressure way before the pandemic hit, and clearly needed an overhaul.  I liked the fact the government was taking a big swing at this and trying to make sure that New Zealander's, regardless of where they lived, got the same services and healthcare. Us Kiwis love fairness!   But, for all the good intentions it turns out making changes as large as this, off the back of a pandemic which had further reduced an already depleted work force, may not have been such a great idea. Nor does it seem the transition was as considered or well executed as well as it needed to be.   A year later, it's not obvious what has changed – except the automatic signature on the bottom of their email, as one specialist told me. Association of Salaried Specialists executive director Sarah Dalton said the union was giving Te Whatu Ora a mark of two out of five so far.   She told me yesterday on the Sunday Session, “There are significant workforce shortages, there are gaps that are simply not being filled and acute demand just keeps getting higher and higher. Which, in turn, is making it really difficult to deliver the planned care." There was a great article in the NZ Herald over the weekend from senior investigative journalist Alex Spencer, looking into the state of our A&E's and work place conditions. I saw this first hand recently.  My son and I visited Auckland Hospital Emergency Department a few weeks back and after a wait of 5 and a half hours, the doctor was very apologetic. As were we; we didn't want to be clogging up the system. My son got excellent care, but when I asked the doctor if the wait time was normal, he unleashed an exhausted and frustrated monologue about wait times, how long it takes to get a bed in a ward, the lack of staff, and the pressure on the system. His final words were “Make sure you use your vote wisely this election.”   I've thought about that doctor often since that night. It was an unexpected and startling moment of candour. What are we doing to these people? We can't afford to be driving doctors away.   From what I've been told, Te Whatu Ora has not worked hard enough or quickly enough to get staff on side, to fill the staffing shortages, to fix the postcode lottery, shorten surgery and GP wait times, give emergency departments some relief or provide adequate mental health services.   No one expects them to have solved all these problems in a year. We understand this is a massive undertaking and it will take time to see results, and yet when those in the system, at the frontline, are saying they see very little change it only seems fair to question the idea and the execution.   Either way, several months out from an election, the government would have been hoping for a better report card than 2 out of 5.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The first thing I thought when I heard of the new surgical wait list criteria policy which includes ethnicity is that Labour wants to lose this election. If their strategists didn't immediately see the risks in this policy then what are they doing in the job. After an autumn full of racially tinged politics where it is obvious that that National and Labour are more than willing to hoe into any policy favouring Maori and Pacific Islanders, this should have been placed in the "not now, not ever" pile. And I say not ever because this is fundamentally bad policy. It asks doctors to award care based on race and not need which is against the fundamental tenet of providing care to everyone with no fear of favour. From the Hippocratic Oath through to the Geneva Convention doctors are taught to treat people humanely, without any adverse distinction founded on race, colour, religion or faith, sex, birth or wealth, or any other similar criteria. But not in New Zealand. If the doctors are moaning about it then you know it's not kosher. It has whole layers of racism. In the waiting list acquired by Newstalk ZB the person at the end of the list had been waiting the longest. And he was a Middle Eastern migrant. So now we all know who's at the bottom of the race rankings. But while some dimwit might have thought they were doing good they obviously don't understand healthcare and inequity. The inequity does not occur in the hospital but in the home. The negative outcomes for certain races stem from poverty, bad housing, fear of doctors and the state, bad diet, bad exercise, and smoking and drinking. Surgery is the end of the healthcare process. It literally is the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff and not the fence at the top. By the stage you're needing to be operated on your condition has gone beyond your income or the colour of your skin. Any competent politician should have seen how mad the policy is and the fact that it was sliding towards nationwide policy throws doubt on the competency of this government which has already been called into question countless times. I'm just so amazed that they have blundered into this giant bear trap.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I'm going to be totally honest and upfront with you about this policy in Auckland where surgeons have been told they need to give Maori and Pacific patients higher priority for treatment. I'm always honest but, on this one, I'm going to tell you how I feel about it - but also admit that I'd probably think differently if it was me or someone close to me affected by a policy like this. On paper, I think it's a great thing. Because, as we know, there's a huge gap when it comes to the health of Maori and Pacific people, compared to everybody else. There's that stat that came through last year when we were talking about COVID that really stuck with me. Which is the health of a 45-year-old Maori person potentially being the same as a 65-year-old non-Maori person. And, when you dig into that, you find that that's put down to the fact that —despite what we might think— non-Maori people get a better deal from the health system. Which, I know, is down to a whole lot of factors. It's not necessarily saying that the door has been closed to Maori and Pacific people when it comes to health. Because there are other factors such as higher smoking rates in the Maori population. Those sorts of things. And, if you really want to go back, there's the view isn't there that Maori have been on the backfoot pretty much since the days of colonisation. And that the health system is way out of touch with Maori culture. Which is why the new Maori Health Authority was established. It wasn't set-up to provide a separate health system. It was set-up to ensure the health system we have better serves the Maori population. By tuning into the culture and trying to make Maori feel less excluded. But, whatever the reasons for it —and there are many— but the fact remains that Maori and Pacific people —generally— are in poorer health than the rest of us. And that's what this policy —that's started in Auckland but is also going to be applied elsewhere— is all about. Better access to surgical treatment for Maori and Pacific people. And, on paper, it sounds brilliant. But here's where I have to be honest with you. Even though I can see the merits of this approach. And I can actually understand why they're doing it, because, if you look at the stats, something's not working. But that's the problem, isn't it? We can all look at the stats and listen to the justification for this approach but –unless you are Maori of Pasifika– there's going to come a point where you (as a non-Maori person, or a non-Pacific person)...there's going to come a point where this policy may impact you personally. And that's where my support for it comes unstuck. Because I can tell you now, that if I needed surgery or someone close to me needed surgery and I was told it wasn't happening or wouldn't be happening for a while because of my ethnicity –then I tell you what, and I'll be honest– I would be really brassed off. Just like if I was Maori or Pasifika and felt that the system over the years had well-and-truly let me down - I'd be brassed off too. Because it has. There's no denying that. Maori and Pacific people have had a raw deal. But, however willing I am to acknowledge that - I have to be honest. I have to look at it as the person I am. I am not Maori. I am not a Pacific person. And I'm not going to lie. If I was unwell enough to need surgery, then I wouldn't want anything else other than my medical condition to determine how soon I got treatment.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The headline in the Herald this morning says, “Auckland surgeons must now consider ethnicity and prioritising patients for operations”. But I think this has been going on for some time, certainly the texts I've received over the past year indicate that this has been going on for some time. ACT party leader David Seymour backed that up when he told Mike Hosking this morning that he's had surgeons, in his office, telling him that they were being told to take ethnicity into account when deciding who should get an operation first, and that they were uncomfortable about it. David Seymour said, well we need evidence that this is in fact a public health policy. And now the evidence is here. Te Whatu Ora have come out and said yes, absolutely, this is what we're doing. Ethnicity will be taken into account, given that Maori Pacific Island patients have historically had unequal access to health care, so this is Te Whatu Ora's way of fixing that. Health officials stress that ethnicity is just one of five factors considered and deciding when a person gets surgery. David Seymour made the point that if the other equity adjusting factors are applied properly, then Maori and Pacifica, who need surgery, will get it. There's got to be equality of opportunity, but equality of outcome is another factor entirely. These other factors should come into play. If you are economically deprived, if you are living in a remote geographical location, all that sort of thing, that should help to level the playing field. I can understand why some doctors are really uncomfortable about this. Surely it should be based on need and need alone. As far back as Hippocrates, surely, that was how doctors decided who they would treat.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora's defending its equity adjuster-waitlist tool. Ethnicity is a factor in new medical waitlist criteria rolled out in Auckland in February — alongside clinical priority, time already spent on the waitlist, location, and deprivation level. Te Whatu Ora's Dr Mike Shepherd told Mike Hosking that clinical prioritisation always takes precedent. The system's being rolled out to other northern region areas. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Act's slamming the move to consider ethnicity when prioritising people on medical waitlists. Ethnicity is now a factor in a new medical wait list tool Te Whatu Ora has rolled out in Auckland, alongside clinical priority, time already waiting, location, and deprivation level. Act leader David Seymour told Mike Hosking that the Government's actively promoting racial discrimination. He says surgeons have told him it's a major ethical failure, saying they swore an oath to be a good doctor to every patient, and it's wrong for them to do this. The tool was implemented in Auckland in February and is now being rolled out across other northern region districts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A leading doctor says inequities in the health system need to be addressed. Ethnicity is now a factor in a new medical wait list Te Whatu Ora has rolled out in Auckland, alongside clinical priority, time already waiting, location, and deprivation level. General Practice New Zealand Chair Dr Bryan Betty told Kate Hawkesby that there are dreadful health outcomes for Māori and Pasifika. He says it's an attempt to try to even up the playing field, and something has to be done. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Doctors are saying the Government's proposed five percent funding increase isn't enough. A number of general practice associations have written to Te Whatu Ora Health NZ calling for an increase of at least 14 percent. College of GPs President Samantha Murton told Mike Hosking the funding model was formulised two decades ago, but lots has changed since then. She says that formula doesn't cover the high cost of medical equipment. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora is holding off decisions regarding the fate of hundreds of jobs. It had indicated June 2 as "D day" for a mass restructure involving about 1600 jobs. However, the National Health Agency has confirmed today that it's postponing any announcements about what it would do next. Public Service Association National Secretary Kerry Davies told Jack Tame that they're pleased that Te Whatu Ora has listened to its concerns, and is seeking further consultation. She says it's going to take some time to work through the feedback. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welfare and advocacy, a wide topic which intersects a little with the subject of burnout. How do we put our patients first while still listening to our own needs? Monty Mythen speaks with Tracey Tay, Chief Medical Advisor, Calvary Health Care, NSW and Jo Sinclair, Interim Clinical Lead for Employee Wellbeing, Te Whatu Ora Health NZ. -- This year TopMedTalk is proud to be providing exclusive coverage of the annual ANZCA conference, the professional body responsible for the specialties of anaesthesia and pain medicine in Australia and New Zealand. For more on ANZCA go here: https://www.anzca.edu.au/ And join in the conversation by checking out their socials here: instagram.com/the_anzca/ https://facebook.com/ANZCA1992 https://youtube.com/AnzcaEduAu

Imagine getting up in the morning and having to make a decision about whether someone will live or die.  Christchurch surgeons were so outraged by Te Whatu Ora's statement that it was delivering 73% of planned care surgeries in Canterbury in the year to date, that they have broken ranks and called BS on that.  Remember back in 2022, when then Health Minister Andrew Little said EDs are “totally safe”. “For the month of August over 100,000 patients went to an ED. Some people are waiting longer for treatment … they're not neglected and ignored, they get care and attention until their bed is freed up or they get the treatment that they need.”  The head of ED surgeons said he nearly swerved off the road when he heard that.  Clinicians said they had serious concerns about system-wide hospital issues decades in the making, which they say are worsening as the sector grapples with widespread staffing shortages. Delays in treatment increase the likelihood of a mistake, they say.  Now we have the DHB by another name saying surgeries are being performed at a rate of 73 per cent - the surgeons themselves are saying its closer to 50% or less. They say that they are having to go from crisis to crisis, that they've been cancelling cancer surgeries, that they're having to choose who has the worst cancer and who won't survive unless there's surgical intervention - that's a terrible strain on professionals and will inevitably take its toll.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

National Party Deputy Leader Nicola Willis and Labour MP for the Hutt South Ginny Andersen join Nick Mills for Politics Monday. Together they debate why retail crime figures are so high, how it can be alleviated, teachers going on strike for betting conditions, whether we need an inquiry into the banks and their massive profits, recent polls and Te Whatu Ora constantly under the spotlight. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Frustration rises over a blow to New Zealand's supply of meningococcal B vaccines. More than 35,000 vaccines have been affected after a cool store went outside the required temperature in the last week of February. 2,800 of those were meningococcal jabs, which are now being assessed to determine if they are still suitable to use. Meanwhile, two 18-year-old students have been hospitalised with meningococcal in Canterbury. Meningitis Foundation's Gerard Rushton says that he was told by Te Whatu Ora last week that vaccine supplies were good. But he says they were astounded this week to find out both the universities and many GP practices in Canterbury were experiencing shortages. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora's Chief Executive has fronted up over a website data botch up. The agency has today apologised after posting the wrong information, falsely recording near-perfect wait time figures for some areas in November and December. The department maintains the underlying data collection is robust and the mistake was made during the publication process. Chief Executive Margie Apa says the error was spotted late yesterday afternoon and she was notified this morning. "So the team has been working to unpack what was the problem, which has helped us arrive at this point, where we now know what the problem is." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Questions are being asked about where hundreds of jobs could be cut at Te Whatu Ora. Former Board chair Rob Campbell —who was sacked by Health Minister Ayesha Verrall this week— says the agency is heading towards a massive restructure. Health Commentator Ian Powell says told Heather du Plessis-Allan that Te Whatu Ora's workforce is largely in hospitals, so the number of people that could be caught up in this proportionally small. He says that for example, some of them will be in payroll and the last thing we want is downsizing payroll services and having people not being paid. Te Whatu Ora says this year they'll be working to deliver on the promise of reforms by continuing to unify, simplify, and integrate their teams. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Newstalk ZB's Chief Political Reporter Aaron Dahmen joins Nick Mills to discuss how TikTok staff overseas can access New Zealand user data, Rob Campbell's sacking from Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand, and how those in the Beehive are feeling one year after the anti-mandate protest. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Labour MP for Ōhāriu Greg O'Connor and National Party Deputy Leader Nicola Willis join Nick Mills for Politics Tuesday on Wellington Mornings. Throughout the hour the pair clash over ED wait times, National's alternative policy to Three Waters, whether local councils need more power and how former National MP Chester Burrows will be remembered.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A gravely ill baby at the centre of a high-profile legal battle will receive the blood transfusion doctors called for. A High Court judge has ruled in favour of Health New Zealand, which asked the court to take guardianship of the six-month-old. The boy's parents refused to let doctors use blood from Covid-vaccinated donors during a heart surgery he desperately needs. Herald reporter George Block says two doctors at Starship Hospital will assume responsibility of the child. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A lawyer says a sick baby whose parents want him to only be treated with blood from unvaccinated people is getting sicker with every heartbeat. Te Whatu Ora Health NZ has gone to court to ask for guardianship of the four month old baby - so doctors can treat him. But his parents are adamant they don't want that to happen if it involves blood from a vaccinated person. Our health correspondent Rowan Quinn and camera operator Marika Khabazi have the story. Rebecca Keenan is a medical lawyer at Liberty Law and is former nurse. She talks to Lisa Owen.  

RNZ can reveal which other hospital radiology departments are at high risk of failing to meet international standards. They are Wellington, the Hutt and Hawke's Bay hospitals. We also now know Nelson and Whanganui are at medium risk. Staff shortages are a critical problem and doctors are speaking out saying it's no wonder given how hard they've found it to come here to work. Phil Pennington reports. [audio_play] Te Whatu Ora - Health NZ says while IANZ accreditation is important, it can be too costly and administratively difficult for small hospitals to apply. It says the departments all have numerous internal levels of insight. IANZ however says it offers secondary, simpler 'recognition' for small hospitals, and that it provides the only independent accreditation option. It says this could play a critical role in assuring a consistent level of radiology service delivery motu-wide and so provide data to Te Whatu Ora on how things are going.

A push to get overseas nurses moved onto the green list for immigration. Te Whatu Ora has decided against moving nurses around the country to help alleviate continued stress on emergency departments. But Board Chair Rob Campbell says an immigration fast track for overseas nurses would be helpful.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on The Huddle: We were joined by Ali Jones from Red PR and Tim Wilson from Maxim Institute to discuss the following topics- and more!  Farmers are trying to crowdfund to try save this station from being turned into carbon farming- is this a turning point? It was Melbourne Cup day today, did you watch it? What did you think? Te Whatu Ora chair Rob Campbell says he wants nurses to be on the green list for immigration, why isn't this the case already? AT permanently cancelling 1000 busses so the remaining busses have more chances of being on time / running. How is this the solution to our public transport woes? Chrissy Teigen released a suspiciously similar cake box mix to Jordan (the Caker) shortly after they collaborated. How uncool is this? LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It probably comes as no surprise to any of us who watched on from the confines of our homes as the Ministry of Health bungled its way through Covid, that they've just discovered a 'coding error'.  It means the number of hospitalisations they recorded was not, in fact, accurate.  Turns out when they said just over 14,000 people were hospitalised with Covid, they meant almost 19,500.  Whoops.  A ‘coding error' led to the under count. Just the 5,000 odd cases out. No biggie.  Unless you're interested in accuracy of course, or facts and real hard data, which one assumes a Ministry of Health department might be, but beggars can't be choosers.  And when it comes to healthcare in this country, we appear to be beggars, sadly. From our delayed vaccine rollout, to our lack of PPE, to our shortage of flu vaccines, to our appalling lack of cancer treatment services, to our shortage of GP's and nurses, to our bungles and errors, it's not exactly a sector firing on all cylinders is it?  And then we hear yesterday that ‘the emergency department of one of our biggest hospitals has been slammed as unsafe for patients and staff in a damning new report.'  News sites reported that in a “scathing, five-page document, Middlemore Hospital has been described as dysfunctional, overcrowded and unsafe.” This was written after ‘an independent inquiry into the death of a patient in June,' who left the Emergency Department after being told the wait was too long.  It was going to be hours before she could get seen for a severe headache apparently, so after they told her this, she decided to just leave and go back home. Understandable.  “A few hours later she was back in an ambulance after a brain haemorrhage and died the following day.” So the report says she didn't get triaged, hence no red flags regarding her condition were picked up.  The report ‘expressed "serious concerns" about the degree of overcrowding in the ED, which it said was an indicator of significant systemic failures and made it ”clear that this institution is struggling. The evidence provided strongly reflected an overcrowded ED, a hospital well over acceptable capacity and subsequent system dysfunction,”' the report's quoted as saying.  The upshot was, it's “unsafe and not sustainable.” So where does that leave patients? And staff? And families in that area?  What reassurances are there that anything will change? How can anything change when resources and staff are so tight? It's hard to know whether to have faith in the platitudes that come after a scathing report like this.  It was reported that, “Te Whatu Ora chief executive and former Counties Manukau District Health Board boss Margie Apa, recognised the issues raised in the report.”  Is recognising the issues the same as addressing them and fixing them? Is recognising them enough?  All that tells me is that you know it's bad.  Te Whatu Ora (which by the way is Health NZ), for its part says it'll conduct a national review.  So we get acknowledgement of the issues, a pledge to review the issues, and in the meantime what? Nothing. I think we deserve better from our health system than just, ‘yep we know it's bad,' don't we?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nurses employed by Te Whatu Ora Health NZ won't be picking up extra shifts this week. The Nurses Organisation made the suggestion last week, as the winter bonus payment of a hundred dollars ended. Whangarei Hospital emergency medicine specialist, Dr Gary Payinda says doctors support what nurses are going through and how hard they work. He hopes they'll get to a resolution that's productive because this can't go on forever. NZNO chief Paul Goulter hopes to negotiate a better way than incentivising nurses to work extra time, taking into account their health and safety. He told Tim Dower Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand decided to introduce the winter payment system without engaging the union. He says they weren't happy as a programme of additional payments incentivises already fatigued workers to do additional shifts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora is warning nurses that their decision to turn down extra shifts next week could be illegal. The Nurses Organisation has told their members to just work their contracted shifts next week. Te Whatu Ora's saying that could be an unlawful strike, because it's refusal to do something that's a normal part of the job. Employment expert, Max Whitehead, is here to explain why this strike is lawful, even if it conflicts with the nurses duty of care.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From midnight tonight, mask requirements end -- except in health and aged care. Government vaccine mandates end in two weeks -- with the decision now solely up to workplaces. Australasian College of Emergency Medicine's John Bonning says the rules have served their purpose -- and we need to move on. He says there's no word yet on whether Te Whatu Ora Health NZ will still mandate the vaccine for hospital staff. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Some doctors have serious concerns about the lack of transparency coming from Te Whatu Ora / Health NZ, after the closure of District Health Boards. Previously, the DHBs had an open door policy and shared papers prior to meetings. Te Whatu Ora's board chair, Rob Campbell, dismissed the concerns when talking to Morning Report yesterday. Lower Hutt gastroenterologist and former member of the Hutt Valley DHB Dr Richard Stein is dismayed at those comments. He spoke to Corin Dann.

Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand chair Rob Campbell is calling complaints over meetings a storm in a teacup. The new centralised health agency is shutting the public out of its monthly board meeting. Campbell says it's not a DHB. He says the former Heath Boards were required by legislation to have open meetings but also had private ones. Campbell told Heather du Plessis-Allan creating access on a national basis is quite different to allowing a reporter at a local meeting. “The pure logistics of it are hard, we're not required to hold our meetings in public, and indeed, other crown entities like us don't hold their meetings in public.” LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora/Health NZ is refusing to allow the public or journalists attend its monthly meetings, or read papers to be discussed. Previously the country's District health Boards had an open door policy and shared papers prior to meetings. The opposition is calling this new approach 'secrecy'. Te Whatu Ora board chair Rob Campbell spoke to Guyon Espiner.

Te Whatu Ora Health NZ is asking hospitals to "actively tackle" long surgical wait lists, by ensuring 7500 people who'd been waiting for longer than a year can have their slot booked before August 31. Many of those are orthopaedic patients, who've been living in pain as they wait for surgery.  Orthopaedic Association president John McKie spoke to Susie Ferguson.  

Hospitals have been given until the end of the month to book an operation for the 7500 patients who've been waiting longer than a year. They've also been given a September deadline to book-in the 4000 people who've been waiting longer than a year just to see a specialist. The directives have come from Te Whatu Ora/Health NZ, and the Planned Care Taskforce set up in May to try to fix huge waiting lists. Hospitals must also cut back on specialist's follow-up appointments with patients after surgery, to free up the doctors for those waiting to be seen for the first time. Susie Ferguson spoke to the Director of Te Whatu Ora, Fepulea'i Margie Apa and asked her if the deadline is realistic.

Middlemore Hospital is apologising to patients who were seen by a man pretending to be a doctor there for six months. A criminal investigation has been launched after the man was able to work there, seeing patients, without the proper qualifications. The hospital, now part of Te Whatu Ora/Health NZ is investigating, including contacting every patient he saw. Health correspondent Rowan Quinn joins Lisa Owen with the details.