Our Health Care crisis has not been addressed over the past two elections at least, they have promised a lot but delivered nothing to try to bring our Hospitals, nursing ratios, doctors hospital beds and Superbacteria.
Now we hear Kennealy Govt. has slushed away over $1 billion dollars to use as a election fighting fund, instead of putting it where it will do the most good right now.
Now being someone that doesn't believe in procrastinating, when talking about such and important area of our society I figured How about a more radical, Visit a chapter from the past and integrate it with the present making a more workable system?
The idea I am floating is making nursing an apprenticeship, which can work in a similar vein to other apprenticeships, except with University instead of Trade course.
This would provide a greater number of nursing staff without the extra expenditure, will ensure on the job training as a component of nursing degree and will result in additional hands to assist with Nursing, while freeing other qualified nurses to see other patients. At the moment you can have 2 RN's changing a patient when only one would be needed if there were suitable less qualified nurses on hand. This will mean an immediate impact on nursing care, additional beds being open, and go a long way to achieving the 4 to 1 ratio that is needed.
Because it is based on the apprenticeship model, it would mean staff numbers would increase quickly as the practical components of the apprenticeships will mean not only quick relief in staffing, but mean the students are receiving sufficient money to assist them in continuing towards their degree.
As qualified nurses will be required to supervise to certain degrees the safety of patients remain high, while the 30% of time when 2 qualified nurses assist each other with a patient will relieve one of these nurses for other patients.
I believe we need to change our approach towards the Health crisis in Australia today, and are too fixed on the level of funding for hospitals and not looking at the larger picture, there are a number of beds in hospitals not filled due to inadequate staffing numbers and we can provide the funds to fill more positions, however, in Australia at the moment we do not have the nursing staff to fill the positions, my suggestion will address that need quickly and without the need to wait a minimum of 12 months for a nurse with a diploma of nursing to arrive.
