Kai Tiaki: Nursing New Zealand articles from July 2003

Kai Tiaki: Nursing New Zealand archives from July 2003

Fronting up to pay equity issues.(editorial)
July 1, 2003... IT IS high time for pay and employment equity. The opportunity to close the gender pay gap has arrived and there's pressure from several directions--including nurses--to see the process through. The Government has set up a Pay and...

What makes a nurse practitioner?(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... THANK YOU for your magazine, which I always enjoy. I am writing in support of Garry Pepperell's letter in the May edition of Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand, p3. I agree with Pepperell that the credentials for being recognised as a nurse...

Alienation from nursing leaders understandable.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I AM writing in response to the article by Chris Cottingham in the May issue of Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand ("Guidelines, regulations, standards, policies and...', p30). The "overwhelming, suffocating mass of standards, competencies,...

Real feminists don't play the victim.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... TERESA O'CONNOR'S viewpoint "Men in nursing--what's their rightful place? published in the May issue of Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand (p29), firmly ensconces her as the victim in her own radical feminist perspective. To make our brothers in...

Struggle for pay parity needs a two-pronged approach.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I AM reflecting upon the Northern Districts' recently achieved multi-employer collective agreement (MECA) and, as a member of the negotiating team, I feel very pleased about that. I have time to reflect, as I am currently on stress leave, like...

Appreciation expressed for organiser's hard work.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I WOULD like to acknowledge publicly the hard work and extra effort my colleagues have taken during the recent, protracted Northern Districts' Multi-employer Collective Agreement negotiations. Here in the Waikato we are very fortunate to...

First New Zealand-trained male nurse remembered.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I VERY much enjoyed reading the May issue of Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand with its coverage of men in nursing. My sister, who is a nurse, lent me a copy. Our father Ted Barnett is believed to be the first male nurse trained in a New...

Praising the professionalism of practice nurses.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... FOLLOWING MY recent change in career from emergency nursing to practice nursing, I would like to share the reception I have been fortunate enough to experience. Firstly, the reception I have been afforded by all practice nurses I have met...

Understanding what it means to be culturally safe.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... A PERSONAL reminder of what cultural safety is all about hit me recently during a family member's recent admission for day surgery. Following the intent of cultural safety innovator Irihapeti Ramsden's teachings, cultural safety is not only...

Curing the 'cancer" of horizontal violence.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I RECENTLY attended the emergency and flight nurses' conference in Christchurch where I heard Christchurch Hospital emergency department clinical charge nurse Paul O'Donovan discuss the "cancer" of horizontal violence. I am concerned about the...

Canterbury senior nurses not getting a fair deal.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... I HAVE recently attended a meeting organised by NZNO concerning a proposal for the next wage round for the Canterbury region. I believe nurses in the Canterbury region are being undersold. It is being suggested we would be moving to Auckland...

Volunteer nurses needed in Vanuatu.(letters)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... IN APRIL this year I went to the island of Malekula in Vanuatu to work with New Zealand doctor Derek Allen. He is the sole doctor on the island, providing medical care for some 35,000 people. Conditions there are "third world" and primitive....

Correction.(letters)(Correction Notice)
July 1, 2003... AN ARTICLE, "Integrating research into daily practice, and photo caption accompanying the article (Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand, June 2003, p15) referred to pioneering German surgeon Friedrich Trendelenburg as working in the latter part of the...

Prescribing rights will extend nursing care.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... NEW ZEALAND'S second nurse practitioner (NP), Paula Renouf, has been endorsed as a nurse prescriber. Nursing Council's chief executive Marion Clark, making the announcement last month, described the endorsement as "a very significant...

NZNO calls for further changes to HPCA Bill.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... THE HEALTH Professionals Competence Assurance Bill (HPCA) was scheduled to have its second and third readings in Parliament this month. NZNO presented a comprehensive submission on the Bill--one of 256--and appeared before the Health...

Campbell appointed to executive nursing position.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... ACTING EXECUTIVE director of nursing and midwifery at Auckland District Health Board, Taima Tukukino Campbell (right), has been appointed to the position permanently. She has been acting in the role for the past 10 months, following the...

New head of school in Southland.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... NURSE EDUCATOR Jill Parsons has recently been appointed head of the nursing school at the Southern Institute of Technology. She replaces Jenny Gordon who retired last year after 21 years. Parsons, who has been a senior lecturer in the...

Honouring Plunket nurses and their work.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... THREE PLUNKET nurses found themselves in the limelight last month after winning the HugaPlunketNurse competition. Leeanne Brown of Palmerston North, Maureen Noble of Upper Hutt and Anne Griffiths of Blenheim were winners of the nation-wide...

New credentialing website.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... NEW ZEALAND nurses and organisations involved in credentialing programmes are being encouraged to contribute to the International Council of Nurses' (ICN) Registry on Credentialling Research (RCR). The ICN-RCR database, launched late last year,...

Ending violence towards nurses.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... THE AUSTRALIAN Nurses Federation (ANF) in Tasmania has launched a campaign denouncing aggression against nurses. At its annual state conference last month, the issue of discrimination and harassment was a major discussion topic. The University...

Stop press.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... STOP PRESS: A report on the effectiveness of New Zealand's cervical screening programme has raised a number of serious concerns. The report by Scottish cytopathologist Euphemia McGoogan assessed the implementation of 46 recommendations arising...

Northern Districts' MECA ratified.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... THE NORTHERN Districts' Multi-Employer Collective Agreement (MECA) was ratified last month by NZNO members in Northland, Tairawhiti, Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Lakes District Health Boards (DHBs). NZNO advocate Shane Vugler said the vote in...

All dressed up for intensive care appeal.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... MIDDLEMOREHOSPITAL intensive care unit (ICU) nurse Sarah Skinner brings a little glamour to her work, in a gown made from theatre scrubs, gloves and glitter wristbands. Looking on is Auckland Hospital ICU nurse Shanyn Alliston, in a far less...

NZNO president and chief executive address ICN conference.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... NZNO PRESIDENT Jane O'Malley and chief executive Geoff Annals, along with mental health nursing educator Marie Crowe, were to give a presentation to the International Council of Nurses' conference "Building Excellence through Evidence" in...

Student loan debt--'a social tragedy'.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... LAST MONTH'S release of the report into nurses' student debt levels captured media interest throughout the country. The report The Impact of Student Debt on Nurses: An Investigation was jointly published by the University Students'...

New enrolled nurses look to the future.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... THIRTY STUDENTS from Northland Polytechnic's enrolled nursing (EN) course --the first in New Zealand in nearly ten years--sit their State final examinations this month. Tutor and course co-ordinator Jeanette Briscoe is confident all will do...

ENs upset at Nursing Council decision.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... ENROLLED NURSES (ENs) are upset Nursing Council has decided they do not need to present portfolios for competence-based annual practising certificates (APCs). Describing the decision as "insulting and condescending", chair of the national...

Primary health care nursing under the spotlight at conference.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... THE RAPIDLY developing primary health care sector and nurses' roles within it is the focus of an NZNO-organised conference in Wellington next month. Entitled Embracing the Future, the conference will bring together four NZNO colleges and...

Faith community nurses gather in Nelson.(news and events)
July 1, 2003... AROUND 30 nurses gathered in Nelson early this month to complete a parish nursing training course. The course is an initial one for nurses and church ministers considering this form of ministry, also called faith community nursing. Course...

Why the angst about nurse practitioners? The advent of the nurse practitioner has created a sense of unease within some parts of the profession. Is it justified?(news focus)
July 1, 2003... THE ROLE of nurse practitioner (NP) has caused some angst within nursing. Some of this disquiet has surfaced over the last few months in the letters to the editor pages of Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand, following publication of an interview...

The voice of nurse practitioners ...(news focus)
July 1, 2003... COLLABORATION IS the key, according to New Zealand's first nurse practitioner (NP), neonatal specialist at Waikato Hospital, Deborah Harris (right). There is exasperation in her voice when asked if she is in competition with doctors or any...

Pain management initiatives improve care: the identification of pain as the fifth vital sign and the standardisation of the pain intensity scale have helped improve practice throughout MidCentral District Health Board.(practice)
July 1, 2003... OVER THE last four years, there have been some dramatic and far-reaching developments in pain management at MidCentral District Health Board (DHB). These have evolved largely as a result of moves to strengthen and support the nursing workforce....

Supporting nurses to manage patients' pain: pain is complex, highly subjective and endlessly fascinating, says nursing team leader at Wellington Hospital's acute pain management service, Julia Barton.(profile)
July 1, 2003... NURSE CONSULTANT and nursing team leader of the acute pain management service at Capital and Coast District Health Board, Julia Barton, is passionate about pain. She's been working in this area for ten years and still finds it endlessly...

The challenging field of pain management nursing: caring for patients with persistent pain is complex and challenging and requires specialist skills.(practice)
July 1, 2003... CHRONIC PAIN management is a demanding field of nursing that challenges nurses to develop new skills. Some pain specialists now prefer the term persistent pain, as they feel chronic implies the pain has to have been present a long time....

Making the case for mental health nursing standards: a group of mental health nurses argues that mental health nursing standards have improved their practice and outcomes for consumers.(viewpoint)
July 1, 2003... WE ARE writing in response to Chris Cottingham's viewpoint, Guidelines, regulations, standards, policies and... (Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand, May 2002, p30). As staff working in acute inpatient mental health services at MidCentral...

Dreaming of nurses' collective strength: after a decade in the frontline of industrial battles, an old campaigner reflects on nurses' seeming unwillingness to use their collective strength.(viewpoint)
July 1, 2003... I HAVE a dream... that nurses may one day realise the potential of their collective strength. After almost a decade of being oil negotiating teams for various collective contracts and agreements and going into battle with management for...

Changing emergency department practice: nurses have a key role to play as innovations are introduced into emergency departments to eliminate ever-increasing waiting times and enhance client satisfaction.(viewpoint)
July 1, 2003... THE EVER-increasing number of attendees and increased waiting times at emergency departments (EDs) throughout New Zealand have be come a fact of life. Furthermore, the shortage of medical and nursing staff is compounding the stressors patients...

Assessing pain key to proper treatment: using a pain rating scale is a good starting point for developing an appropriate pain management strategy.(professional focus)
July 1, 2003... "PAIN IS what the patient says it is." How many nurses really believe this statement? Indeed, how many actually take the time to thoroughly assess pain from the patient's perspective? This is an important question, as information from the...

The next round in the pay campaign begins: district health board negotiations are underway in the South Island. NZNO hopes the outcomes will close the pay gaps between public sector members around the country.(industrial focus)
July 1, 2003... WITH THE Northern Districts Multi Employer Collective Agreement (MECA) ratified by members and the renegotiation of the South Island (SI) MECA and the Canterbury District Health Board (DHB) agreement underway, NZNO's national remuneration...

Enrolled nurses celebrate 25 years of conferences.(section news)
July 1, 2003... TWO MEMBERS of the committee which organised enrolled nurses' (EN) inaugural conference in Tokoroa in 1978, attended the silver jubilee conference in Christchurch last month. Relda Lawrence from Invercargill and Barbara Fish from Auckland were...

Obstetric nurses learn more about birthing practices.(section news)
July 1, 2003... THE 13th conference of the registered obstetric nurses' section was held in Wellington in May. Although numbers were smaller than usual, this did not stop our group enjoying the friendship and support generated by such gatherings. The...

Conference offers chance to debate, share ideas, challenge practice and network.(section news)
July 1, 2003... WE HAVE spent the last couple of weeks cleaning out boxes full of post-conference stuff--left-over bags, posters, certificates, delegate lists, paper and pens, some of which were fleeced by a certain committee member's children before we had a...

Dunedin to host second gynaecology nursing conference.(section news)
July 1, 2003... THE NATIONAL Gynaecology Nurses' Interest Group is holding its second conference from October 31 to November 2. The conference will be held in Dunedin and many of the guest speakers are from there. Its inaugural conference last year attracted...

Using NZNO's library most effectively: NZNO's library is not designed as a research library for students. But library staff are willing to help, if students first help themselves.(library resources)
July 1, 2003... MEMBERS WHO are studying often approach the library for assistance but the library is not resourced to support either under-or postgraduate students. We do, however, want to assist members. To help us do this most effectively, we ask students...

Hamilton.(Staffing shortages plague Waikato)
July 1, 2003... THE LAST six months have been full-on for NZNO members in the region, especially for district health board (DHB) nurses. They have had to make significant decisions around their pay agreement and the pay equity claims NZNO is putting forward....

Palmerston North.(Staffing shortages plague Waikato)
July 1, 2003... MIDCENTRAL DISTRICT HEALTH BOARD (MCDHB): May saw the circulation of the Rostering Standards document. During the multi-employer collective agreement (MECA) negotiations for the seven lower North Island DHBs, it was agreed to develop...

Christchurch.(Staffing shortages plague Waikato)
July 1, 2003... CANTERBURY DISTRICT Health Board: Negotiations began last month for the multi-union/multi-occupational collective employment agreement which covers NZNO members in the Mental Health and Older Persons' Health Divisions. This collective agreement...

Wellington.(Staffing shortages plague Waikato)
July 1, 2003... HUTT VALLEY and Wairarapa District Health Board (DHB) medical radiation technologists have ratified a settlement offer for their collective employment agreement. It provides for a five percent pay increase over a 12 month term. I am...

Aged-care workers present petition to Minister.(regional reports)
July 1, 2003... A PETITION calling for better aged-care funding, safer working conditions, a national training system free to aged-care workers and agreed labour standards was presented to Associate Minister of Health Ruth Dyson at Parliament last month. ...

New clause guarantees current wages and conditions if sites sold.(regional reports)
July 1, 2003... PRESBYTERIAN SUPPORT Northern announced in May 2003 it had decided to sell the Macpherson Group, its residential aged-care group. The group consists of three sites in Auckland: Lady Allum, Meadowbank, a hospital and rest-home and Heather House,...

New NZNO organisers share orientation day.(regional reports)
July 1, 2003... NZNO'S THREE newest organisers (from left) Lynley Mulrine, Christchurch, Mark Lennox, Auckland, and Laura Thomas, Wellington, at an orientation day in Wellington last month. Lennox, a registered nurse, began working for NZNO in May, after...