No evidence to back nurses: Hipkins

WELLINGTON: MIQ nurses insist they are sometimes working around the clock, but Covid19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says there is no evidence of that.

Two nurses at managed isolation and quarantine have said they worked multiple 24hour shifts because there was nobody available to cover the night.

In response, Mr Hipkins said they had ‘‘no evidence’’ of these claims and extended shifts would be on an oncall basis only.

‘‘There is a provision in the contract where you can work a shift and you can be oncall, so basically staying overnight.

‘‘That’s part of their collective contract agreement and there are people who have done that, but there’s no evidence of anyone having worked a 24hour shift.’’

One nurse provided a timesheet to RNZ showing she was rostered on for a 21.5hour shift.

Another nurse said they worked three 24hour shifts.

They detailed a time where they were on call, which involved working for 19 hours with a fivehour rest period.

The nurse said these hours were ‘‘never restful’’.

‘‘I slept in my uniform and didn’t have important things like a toothbrush, medications or a change of clothes.’’

Another oncall shift meant having to spend ‘‘a long time’’ in the middle of the night with an ‘‘agitated’’ guest who had just learned their parent had died.

The nurse said as a result, they were not fit or able to do their next day shift and had to scramble to find someone to fill in.

The nurses also said they were worried chronic understaffing could result in a breach of Covid19 at the border.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she wanted to look into the concerns and ensure nurses had a safe working environment.

‘‘We are keeping in touch with unions, making sure we are aware of concerns . . . I want to look at all of the issues that they’ve been raising.’’

The Ministry of Health said there were ongoing improvements in working conditions at managed isolation and quarantine facilities.

‘‘From time to time staffing can be a challenge in a hotel for a variety of reasons but we believe overall there is much greater stability.’’

There were two cases of Covid19 in managed isolation in New Zealand yesterday, the Ministry of Health confirmed. — RNZ