Christchurch Hospital is facing a shortage of 120 nurses, as revealed by the Care Capacity Demand Management (CCDM) system used to determine safe staffing levels. Nurses input data into the CCDM system at the end of each shift to assess the staffing required for providing safe care and aid in staff planning.
Recent data obtained by RNZ indicated that Christchurch Hospital was understaffed by 120 nurses according to the CCDM system’s recommendations from last year. The emergency department was short 25 full-time equivalents, while the neurology and neurosurgery ward lacked 11 full-time equivalents.
New Zealand Nurses’ Organisation delegate Courtney Milne noted that the demand on staff has not decreased since the data was collected, with patients presenting sicker due to delays in receiving timely care.
Health New Zealand (HNZ) acknowledged the inconsistent use of the CCDM system across 18 different DHB areas and temporarily paused its implementation to standardize FTE calculations. Despite nurses’ frustration with entering data that does not impact long-term staffing decisions, HNZ assured its commitment to safe staffing levels.
HNZ’s chief nursing officer Nadine Gray emphasized the organization’s dedication to quality improvement in FTE calculations to meet patient care demands. The new HNZ CCDM FTE Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) aims to align staffing levels with patient needs and ensure the right staff-to-patient ratio.
While Gray could not comment on the specific situation in Christchurch, she praised nurses for their dedication in providing care despite working in high-demand environments. The upcoming budget is expected to provide health chiefs with better oversight of FTEs nationwide.
