Care Capacity Demand Management: Safe staffing by numbers?
Whakahaere Tono Kahanga Taurima: He tiaki haumaru mā te tokomaha?
Rhonda McKelvie, RN, BSc(Hons), MN, PhD candidate (doctoral scholar) at Massey University, Palmerston North, NZ
Reference: McKelvie, R. (2018). Editorial. Care Capacity Demand Management: Safe staffing by numbers? Nursing Praxis in New Zealand, 34(3), 4-5. https://doi.org/10.36951/NgPxNZ.2018.009
Abstract:
Recently New Zealand (NZ) witnessed the first nursing strike in nearly 30 years – pay and safe staffing were the central concerns. Twelve years ago, the report by the Safe Staffing/Healthy Workplaces Committee of Inquiry (2006) recommended a mechanism for responding to excessive workloads and finding sustainable solutions to safe staffing issues. In 2009, the Care Capacity Demand Management (CCDM) programme began development, as an outcome of an agreement between the District Health Boards (DHBs) and the New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) to work together on safe staffing and healthy workplaces. Progressive implementation of CCDM into DHBs around the country has been met with varied interest, investment, and results. The August strike highlighted that safe staffing and patient safety remain a major and national issue for the nurses in our public health services.