July 2, 2022

primary health

“Disappointed”: College of Emergency Medicine pans Liberal health ‘recap’ 

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The Australian College of Emergency Medicine (ACEM) has criticised the Liberal-National Government’s pre-election announcement on health, describing it as merely a ‘recap’ of past announcements without any genuine solutions for the future of Australia’s healthcare system.  

ACEM condemned the incumbent government for its lack of investment in the health system, particularly around the Primary Health Care 10 Year Plan that was released by the government earlier in the year.  

“The Liberal’s health plan is hollow and lacks any genuine content. Australians need our political leaders to show leadership, vision and the capacity to translate the vision into action,” said ACEM President Dr Clare Skinner.  

“The solutions to the problems plaguing health across Australia are not easy, and they are not quick. But genuine leadership isn’t supposed to be easy. 

“We need leaders who will stand up for health and can bring all parts of the healthcare system together to reimagine a better, more equitable way of doing things”. 

ACEM indicated that further investment in primary and acute health was required to stem the current issues in the sector, including acute access block, ambulance ramping and the ongoing ED overcrowding crisis.  

“Gowns out of garbage bags”: study highlights lack of PPE for primary health

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An Australian study has found “insufficient personal protective equipment (PPE)” was being made available in primary health care settings, putting nurses at incredible risk through COVID-19. 

The study of 637 primary health nurses from across the country indicated a severe shortage of PPE in many primary health workplaces, with only 26% of respondents indicating they had sufficient access to gown and 23% indicating they had access to P2/N95 masks at all time. 

Worryingly, less than half (47%) of respondents said that their workplaces had COVID-19-specific PPE guidelines at their facilities. 

Survey respondents revealed that they were forced to resort to shockingly inadequate PPE measures, including purchasing stock privately or making gowns out of garbage bags. 

“We couldn’t source long sleeved gowns when COVID hit so had some home‐made”, one respondent said. 

The lack of PPE was resulting in primary health nurses considering resignation, with 52% of those who were considering leaving the profession blaming “personal safety” as their reason. 

The authors noted that “more needs to be done to ensure sufficient stockpiles [of PPE] are maintained”. 

“The shortage of PPE during the COVID‐19 pandemic has been extensively reported”, the study stated. 

The NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association is continuing its advocacy to ensure all nurses and midwives have access to adequate personal protective equipment. Members can report unsafe PPE practices here. If you’re not yet a member, you can join today.