Member Stories
The government doesn’t appreciate our sacrifices
CNC Raelene Costello shares her dismay at the NSW Government’s wage freeze policy.
As a nurse, you just cannot walk out at finishing time like you can in a lot of other professions.
What happens when there are no staff to hand over to?
Who will care for your loved one who may be coming into hospital distressed or suicidal?
Yes, we do mandatory overtime. This becomes a requirement, rather than an option, as you cannot leave a distressed or suicidal person. We can’t ask them to come back tomorrow as they may not be alive, so we stay to make sure they are safe.
We are very short of qualified mental health nurses, so it is up to the team to fill the extra shifts. And yet, I cannot believe that we have been offered just 0.3 per cent this year.
This makes me feel like we are not appreciated by the government for all we do for our communities.
So, I ask our premier: if it was your loved one who was suicidal, wouldn’t you want a qualified clinician assessing them? Because I hope you appreciate what we do to make sure your loved one is safe.