News bulletin 2 November

on 2 November

 

Welcome to the College of Nurses Aotearoa News Update.
No. 323 2 November 2016

 

National news

Global honours for nursing students
Two School of Nursing students head to Ireland next week, as honoured winners in the annual international Undergraduate Awards.
Talitha Claassens, from New Plymouth, and Rosana Hare, from Feilding, have been cited as the ultimate champions of high-potential undergraduates at the awards referred to as “junior Nobel Prizes”, which recognise excellent research and original work in sciences, humanities, business or creative arts.
Read more here

         
Too stretched to train more specialist nurses
Gaining more specialist nurses in public hospital eye clinics is crucial to clearing the backlog of southern patients waiting for appointments and to saving eyesight. Southern nurses are reporting they don’t have the capacity to train new staff while they are stretched to the limit with current demands. NZNO has alerted DHB management about this issue for two years.
Read more here

Patients have 'severe loss of vision' in long wait for treatment
The condition of 30 people who are losing their eyesight has worsened because of significant delays in treatment at Dunedin and Southland hospitals.
Read more here

NCHIP to back load health milestones for 8,000 Taranaki children
Taranaki’s new National Child Health Information Platform (NCHIP) and Child and Youth Coordination Service (CaY-C) will begin back loading key health milestone information for approximately 8,000 Taranaki children onto the NCHIP system this week.
Read more here

National enrolment service roll-out on target
Health Minister Jonathan Coleman says the roll-out of the new national enrolment service in general practices across the country is on target. 
Read more here

Aged care

NZ aged care trust wins for robotic baby fur seal 'colony'
A New Zealand aged care trust has been lauded for its use of a robotic fur seal 'colony' that helps dementia patients.
Read more here

Kiwis increasingly hitting 100 year milestone
Recently turned-100-year-old Wattie Thomas said luck and good living was his secret to reaching a century of life.
Thomas lives at Rowena Jackson retirement village in Invercargill.
"I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would be one of the ones that would reach 100."
Read more here

Asthma and allergy

Fragranced products:  risks for people and profits?  
A University of Melbourne researcher has found that over one-third of Americans report health problems—from asthma attacks to migraine headaches—when exposed to common fragranced consumer products such as air fresheners, cleaning supplies, laundry products, scented candles, cologne, and personal care products.   
Read more here

Cancer issues

Major treatment delays for women with some types cancer
Some women with cancer of the reproductive organs have experienced waiting times far longer than the Government's new target, putting them at risk of worse outcomes.
Read more here

Why are some preventable cancer deaths in Māori and Pacific peoples increasing?
Work we just published shows some adverse trends in cancer deaths by ethnic group, as well as some favourable trends. In this blog we discuss some of the key findings of this research and what the options are for NZ society to address the harmful trends for obesity-related cancers, tobacco-related cancers and infection-related cancers.
Read more here

DHBs

Community Health Council to ensure patient perspectives are heard
The ‘voice of the patient’ has long had an important role in health care, and now Southern DHB and WellSouth (working in partnership as Alliance South) are establishing a Community Health Council to ensure patient perspectives are embedded across the health service.
Read more here

Health funding and research

Study to examine traditional Māori herbal medicines for anti-diabetic properties
Plant and food biologist Dr Jonni Koia (Tainui, Ngati Whawhākia) is returning to New Zealand after many years across the ditch to investigate the potential of traditional Māori herbal medicines to help combat type-2 diabetes.
Read more here

Mental health

New research shows gaps widening for Māori
Wai-Research today launches two important publications that look into Māori child wellbeing and the widening gaps in Māori Mental Health, as well as announcing Emeritus Professor Sir Mason Durie as Pou (Patron) of the research unit.
Read more here

Help on way for rural residents struggling to access mental health services
Help is on the way for rural Southlanders struggling to access mental health services in the remote areas they live, experts say.
Southern District Health Board medical director of mental health Brad Strong has made the statement after a judge said a man's assault on his children could be explained by his depression, and his difficulty finding help.
Read more here

Mental health workers clock up big hours
There have been 60 occasions over the past financial year where staffers at Capital and Coast DHB's acute mental health unit worked more than 60 hours in a week.
Read more here

A day in the life of a mental health nurse in New Zealand
This blog was sent to us by a NZNO member who works in mental health. We are choosing to keep their details anonymous because of the intense scrutiny that mental health services are currently under. This blog is a personal reflection on their own experience, rather than NZNO’s view, but we are sure it resonates with many of you who work in the sector. We really appreciate them sharing their story, and hope it gives some context to the recent media coverage of our mental health services. 
Read more here

More resources needed to curb high Māori suicide rates
The suicide rate among Māori is nearly twice that of any other ethnicity and a researcher says disconnection from culture is a factor.
Read more here

Obesity

Obesity epidemic already upon us say medical professionals
The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons has issued a dire warning to Australians and New Zealanders about their countries’ weight problem, as alarming statistics highlight the prevalence of the problem in young people.
Read more here

32 per cent of Kiwi children and teens will be overweight or obese by 2025
Almost one third of Kiwi children aged up to 17 will be obese or overweight by the year 2025, say medical experts who are warning an obesity epidemic may worsen.
Read more here

Does teacher know best in the obesity epidemic?
New Zealand schools are fast becoming battle grounds against obesity with Ministry of Health initiatives increasingly calling for direct involvement from teachers.
Schools are implementing a range of ‘anti-obesity’ practices too including inspecting children’s lunchboxes, banning cakes, running boot camps, encouraging the use of fitness tracking devices and asking children to keep eating and exercise diaries.
Read more here

Claims of a NZ obesity epidemic are 'fearmongering', says academic
A Manawatu academic has slammed a warning about a projected spike in child obesity as "fearmongering".
A dramatic jump in the number of children considered overweight or obese is expected to hit New Zealand within the next nine years.
Read more here

Patient safety

Cost of injuries received during medical procedures spike
The cost of helping people who are injured while receiving medical treatment has reached its highest-ever point.
The treatment injury bill broke the $100 million mark for the first time last year, with ACC expecting it to climb even further in the coming years.
Read more here

New report shows improved patient care
The Health Quality & Safety Commission is celebrating improved patient care as Patient Safety Week begins, with the release of a new report –Open4Results.
Read more here

Primary health care

Lego lodged in Etua's ear for years
His mum didn't know how long they had been in his ear.
But a piece of Lego and a toy battery lodged in Etua Raki's ear were affecting his hearing.
After failing a school hearing test and struggling to keep up in class Etua's mother Tania Raki took him to the Waitemata District Health Board mobile clinic last year. The pieces were removed by a public health nurse
Read more here

Public health

Young people recruited to lead new rheumatic fever campaign
Health Minister Jonathan Coleman and Acting Youth Minister Anne Tolley say young people will be recruited to help raise awareness of rheumatic fever amongst their peers.
Read more here

Telehealth and e-health

Success of Southern DHB diabetes telemedicine clinic featured at health informatics conference
Eighteen months after it was established, a Southern DHB diabetes telemedicine clinic is being held up as an example of excellence in telemedicine delivery at a digital health conference in Auckland this week.
Read more here

Marborough GPs consider Skype to reach rural and disabled patients
Doctors and medical specialists in Marlborough are being encouraged to use video calls for patients struggling to attend regular appointments.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/85785070/marborough-gps-consider-skype-to-reach-rural-and-disabled-patients

Tobacco, drugs and alcohol

MoH announces recommended methamphetamine contamination guidelines
Housing New Zealand has welcomed the Ministry of Health’s (MoH) recommended guidelines for methamphetamine contamination.
The organisation believes the MoH guidelines provide a clearer distinction between use and P lab contamination.
Read more here

Govt agencies unable to agree on meth warnings
Two government agencies are at loggerheads over the meth testing of state homes.
Read more here

Meth test misuse 'tearing families apart' - Turia
Families are being torn apart by Housing New Zealand's deliberate misuse of methamphetamine testing, former Māori Party co-leader Dame Tariana Turia says.
Read more here

Housing NZ ignored warnings over meth evictions
Housing New Zealand has ignored repeated warnings from senior government officials that the meth testing guidelines it was using to evict its tenants were only meant for houses where the drug had been manufactured.
Read more here

Approach to meth control 'seriously' backwards says dapaanz
The Addiction Practitioners’ Association of Aotearoa New Zealand (dapaanz) says New Zealand’s approach to curbing its burgeoning methamphetamine problem is backwards and far too focused on catching and punishing offenders. Instead it says the focus should be on treatment, prevention and rehabilitation which, it contends, are far more effective at reducing methamphetamine use and drug-related crime.
Read more here

Heavy boozing sessions half of all alcohol sales, says new research
Heavy boozing sessions of eight or more drinks account for about half of total alcohol sales in higher income countries like New Zealand, new research has found.
Read more here

Profiting from the harm caused by alcohol
New research from the International Alcohol Control study, coordinated by Massey University, demonstrates the extent to which the alcohol industry relies on harmful use of alcohol to make money.
Read more here

International news

Physician assistants can cut hospitalist program costs
Hospitalist programs have been used as a way to more efficiently deliver healthcare in the hospital setting for decades now. But the way an organization deploys personnel in a hospitalist program can make a difference in terms of cost and patient outcomes.
Read more here

Bilingual nurses knock down language, cultural barriers
Advocates say healthcare leaders should invest in bilingual nursing staff to improve patient safety and better prepare their organizations to meet each patient’s needs.
Read more here

Dudley Group part of pilot for new nursing associates
THE Dudley Group of hospitals and its partners have secured funding to pilot the role of nursing associates to work with registered nurses and clinical support workers.
Read more here

Spiritual Care in Nursing
Nurses' attitude towards spirituality and how it benefits their patients
Read more here

Nurses' scrubs can harbor nasty germs
The “scrubs” of intensive care unit (ICU) nurses often pick up disease-causing germs, including those resistant to antibiotics, a new study reports.
Read more here

Nurses want province to clearly define violence as workplace hazard
Nurses want more action from government to help protect them from workplace violence
Read more here

Remote nurses face ‘constant threats’
MORE than 40 per cent of remote area nurses have directly experienced or observed threats, bullying or harassment in the past year and say it’s the main reason for clinicians resigning or not extending contracts.
Read more here

Nursing shortage: Some progress, but challenges remain
As the healthcare industry’s nursing shortage continues, progress has been made--and challenges still remain, according to a new blog post.
Read more here

Nurses Are Caretakers, Not Scientists, Right? Wrong
In fact, they've been doing scientific research since the days of Florence Nightingale
Read more here

Professor titles should ‘only be given to chief nurses judiciously’
Chief nurses who use the honorary title of professor are causing uproar among academic colleagues who believe it should be reserved for those with genuine research credentials, a new study has revealed.
Read more here

Fears as apprentice nurses allowed to dispense drugs
Apprentice nurses will be allowed to administer controlled drugs to NHS patients, under plans criticised by experts as a “recipe for confusion”.
Leaked documents reveal that a new tier of “nursing associates” with as little as two years’ experience will be entitled to measure out doses of medicine and carry out invasive procedures without direct supervision.
Read more here

Four in 10 new nurses are from overseas, amid warnings NHS faces 'perfect storm' post-Brexit
Four in ten new nurses have come from overseas – the highest level in more than a decade, according to a new report warning of a “perfect storm” about to hit the NHS
Read more here

Workplace

Rudeness in the workplace is contagious
Yawning, laughing, and even vomiting are contagious — I feel a lump in my throat just writing that sentence. But a new study suggests there’s another kind of behavior we should be wary of catching: rudeness.
Read more here

What to Do When a Patient Refuses Assistance
No one should be subject to treatment that they do not wish to receive, but there is more to the story than just refusing treatment.
As nurses, we are taught to take every step necessary to save a life. We are also trained to respect the patient’s wishes. Sometimes, these two tenets conflict, and this leaves the ethical nurse in a quandary as to how to proceed.
Read more here

Articles of interest

Care transitions at the end of life
Nursing Management:
October 2016 - Volume 47 - Issue 10 - p 20–28
Transitioning care between healthcare settings is a current focus for accrediting agencies. According to The Joint Commission, the transition of care denotes the “movement of patients between healthcare practitioners, settings, and home as their condition and care needs change.”1 Transition of care as it relates to communication of care across settings has become a core measure for The Joint Commission in specific certification types, such as advanced certification for Comprehensive Stroke Centers, advanced certification in heart failure, and Primary Care Medical Home certification. And the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has incorporated it into stage 2 of Meaningful Use, recognizing communication as being essential for successful care transitions between providers.2,3 Of course, nurses are critical to effective communication at the bedside, identifying patient care goals and supporting patients and their families as they make difficult decisions at the end of life.4
Read more here

Doctoral education for nurses today: the PhD or professional doctorate?
THE AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING
VOLUME 34 ISSUE 1
This paper seeks to stimulate discussion and debate about the future of doctoral education for nurses in Australia.
Download Article

From the Ministry of Health

Review of Remediation Standards for Clandestine Methamphetamine Laboratories: Risk Assessment Recommendations for a New Zealand Standard
This report provides a recommendation to be incorporated in a new proposed standard for methamphetamine residues in remediated houses
previously used as clandestine laboratories and also where methamphetamine has used, but not manufactured.

The recommendation is based on a review by the Institute of Environmental Science and Research of published and online literature, international health authority websites, reports, and journal articles relating to health effects and exposures to methamphetamine. 
Read more here

National Patient Flow: Prioritisation outcome of referrals for first specialist assessment tables (developmental)
Note: The data presented in these tables is developmental. The Ministry advises that you should not compare numbers between DHBs as:
some DHBs are experiencing delays in their ability to submit corrected data, so there are known gaps and inconsistencies
DHBs are working towards improvements in data quality and completeness, and the methodologies and assumptions they use to derive these measures are being refined.
Read more here

The above information has been collated for the College of Nurses Aotearoa (NZ) Inc by Linda Stopforth, SNIPS and is provided on a weekly basis.  It is current as at Tuesday 1 November  2016

If you have any feedback about content - what parts are most useful or what you would like added - please email admin@nurse.org.nz

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