Number of clinical health staff increasing - Health NZ

Health officials have been marking the growth in the number of full-time clinical roles as evidence that they have made it clear where their hiring priorities lie.

Health New Zealand's latest figures show the number of people working for the organisation — including non-clinical staff — has risen five per cent, up 4167, when compared to the same time period the previous year.

1News analysed the latest report against those published last year.

It showed the number of non-clinical roles was dipping, down four per cent (603 full-time employees) — a decline that traces back to before the change in government.

Meanwhile, nurses and midwives are being hired at the fastest rates.

In the year to June, a full-time equivalent (FTE) of 2580 nurses was added to Te Whatu Ora's books — up 10%. In midwifery, there was a rise of 114 FTE — up 11%.

The areas that saw the largest growth — as a per cent of their overall staff both clinical and non-clinical — were Capital and Coast at 553 (9%), Wairarapa at 62 (11%) and Tairāwhiti at 104 (11%).

Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand chief executive Margie Apa said the data shows the agency has met its objective to prioritise resources into front line clinical roles.

"It's telling us that we are still recruiting and we're able to get more people working within Health New Zealand."

Apa acknowledged there was still a shortfall.

"Certainly, I think that in some parts of our services, they may still be facing workforce shortages. We know that these are areas like mental health, emergency departments, critical care, that need very specialised skill sets, and it does take longer to fill those places."

She said "recruitment is open" and those who hold the budgets for that can get on and recruit their staff.

But those working on the front line said the data doesn't paint the full picture.

College of Emergency Nurses chairperson Lauren Miller said it's a bit confusing to hear officials talk about the large rise in numbers at a time when she's struggled to staff the area she works in.

"This year specifically, all we are hearing is a limitation on budgets, and we haven't been able to fill roles."

Others attending the national Nurses Organisation conference in Wellington this week described a slow hiring process, stressed staff, and a need for more funding to help them do their jobs.

The chief executive of the nursing union Paul Goulter said while officials may deny a freeze, the reality is it's happening.

"Nothing's been fixed quite frankly."

He said data the organisation obtained via the Official Information Act showed that, in July, there were 90 wards across the network that were understaffed 50% of the time.

The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists' principal policy advisor Virginia Mills said the reality is the growth in figures is not keeping up with population demand.

"Every extra clinician that is recruited is a good thing," she said.

"I know that our members are always delighted when they're able to recruit to fill a vacancy, but we do have to look at these numbers in the broader context."

She said, as well as the natural growth in the population, the population is getting older, which also increases the pressure on health staff.

"Overall we are just too short-staffed to meet the needs of the population and we've also got a whole lot of unmet need that's not being accounted for."

Some examples Mills cited were the increasing number of referrals doctors were having to turn down, the large sector of the population that can't access primary care, and extended wait times.

Te Whatu Ora's data from the last quarter has indicated some signs of a slowdown in hiring. Although the three-month snapshot ending in March is too brief to conclusively call it a trend, and some of the numbers may reflect seasonal fluctuations, many people are concerned that it points to the severity of budget constraints.

Labour's health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said the growth has stopped in the last quarter because of the hiring freeze, pointing out a significant part of that increase happened under the last government's watch.

In response, Health Minister Shane Reti said "there is no freeze" and irrespective of what the quarter shows "the net result is an increase".

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