7. Question No. 7—HealthDr SHANE RETI (National) to the Minister of HealthQuestion No. 7—Health7. Dr SHANE RETI (National) to the Minister of Health: What is the current national nursing shortage for each of the four main nursing groups as described in written parliamentary question 11238 and which hospital facilities if any are currently impacted by nursing shortages?Hon ANDREW LITTLE (Minister of Health): In response to the first part of the member's question I'm advised that as at 31 March 2022 nurse vacancies are as follows: enrolled nurses 101.94 full-time equivalents or 12.9 percent of the enrolled nurse workforce; nurse practitioners 6.25 full-time equivalents or 6.7 percent of that workforce; registered midwives including senior midwives 310 full-time equivalents or 23.8 percent of that workforce; and registered nurses including senior nurses 2663 or 9.63 percent of that workforce. In response to the second of the member's question district health boards are responsible for managing their own workforces. Data is not collected at the level of granularity to be able to indicate specific hospital facilities that may be affected by the current vacancy rates across the health system. I point out that there is currently an elevated level absenteeism particularly of nurses because of COVID and other winter illnesses that is also putting pressure on the hospital system.Dr Shane Reti: When he said last year that the health system was well prepared had he been made aware of the size of the expected nursing shortage at that time?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: What I am aware of is that since this Government came into office it has funded an additional 4000 nurse roles in our hospital system. Not all of those roles are filled at the moment. But in addition to that the impact of COVID particularly Omicron has seen an elevated level of absenteeism of the health workforce including nurses. Now with the winter flu season upon us that also has put pressure on those workforces.Dr Shane Reti: What advice has he received if any on the number of years it will take to clear the current nursing shortage?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: The advice I've had is that providing the Government is committed to properly funding the health system and supporting the nurse workforce by lifting their pay and paying them properly—as this Government has done increasing their pay 20 percent since we became the Government rather than nurse pay going backwards in real terms under the previous Government—then we stand a good chance of filling those vacancies and getting the health workforce that we need to provide the healthcare that New Zealanders want.Dr Shane Reti: What impact if any could Australia's decision to spend $4.5 billion to grow their health workforce have on the size of New Zealand's nursing shortage?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: That remains to be seen and of course New Zealanders going to Australia go in with their eyes open and they know that when they go to work in Australia they don't have the same rights to residency as Australians get working here. They don't get the same rights from the National Disability Insurance Scheme over there that workers here get under our ACC scheme. Anybody going from New Zealand to work in Australia does not have the same education rights for their children as would happen in New Zealand and there are a range of other conditions that make Australia a challenging place to secure a workforce. Of course that is a country—particularly in New South Wales and Victoria—whose health systems were under such extreme pressure that they were in fact overwhelmed by COVID something that didn't happen in New Zealand.Dr Shane Reti: Are health officials receiving formal notifications such as section 31s from aged care and a provisional improvement notice from Wellington Hospital showing that due to nursing shortages it is unsafe for some nurses to practice?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: I'm aware that a provisional improvement notice was served on Capital and Coast District Health Board recently because of staff shortages and that appears to be related to the fact that hospital management hasn't taken the same steps that other hospitals around the country have done to manage down planned care—which was always expected around this time of the year with the winter flu season—to keep pressure off beds so that those who are being admitted for respiratory conditions get the beds that they need.