8 November 2021
At a time when a whistle-blower has identified empty treatment spaces whilst patients were banked up in the Royal Adelaide Hospital emergency department and elective surgery was being cancelled, Central Adelaide Local Health Network managers have refused a request by the nursing and midwifery union’s CEO to work alongside nurses during a shift in the RAH emergency department.
No reason or explanation was given.
The request followed requests from Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (SA Branch) members for their CEO/Secretary, Adjunct Associate Professor Elizabeth Dabars AM, to come and work alongside them to experience the current pressures that they face every day, every shift.
Staff shortages and dangerously long waiting times for patients have been rampant at the RAH, with exhausted nurses working double shifts and excessive overtime. Nurses are afraid to publicly voice their concerns, for fear of reprisals from management.
“I am a registered nurse of many years standing and was simply going to observe practice within the department alongside our members,’’ Ms Dabars said.
“I would have been very happy to sign any privacy agreements and observe any patient requests for me not to observe their care.
“My own nursing registration means that I would be bound not to reveal details that relate to particular patients and their care. So, something other than that is at play here.
“I’m deeply concerned that this is yet another attempt to silence the ANMF and our members from expressing the concerns that we have around emergency department loads, ramping and the shortages of acute care beds in the hospital,’’ Ms Dabars said.
“I am calling on Central Adelaide Local Health Network management to change their minds over this decision in the interests of transparency and of our members and the patients for whom they care.”