National’s dodgy health announcements

Written By: - Date published: 4:09 pm, November 27th, 2024 - 18 comments
Categories: Christopher Luxon, health, mark mitchell, national, same old national, Shane Reti, uncategorized - Tags:

You have to admire National’s ability to trumpet dodgy statistics and present a perception of reality far removed from what is actually happening.

This week we saw one example when despite an earlier promise not to do so Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Police Minister Mark Mitchell claimed that gang numbers had stabilised. This is even though they were told that the membership list should not be used for statistical purposes and that being removed from the list was a haphazard process. It was a case that gang members could check out any time they liked but they could never leave.

And to top off how disingenuous this claim was they knew that there had been a cull of the list and that  791 names had been removed between February and July of this year.

You would except better from an apparently god faring Christian.

But this deception blurs into insignificance compared to what they have been doing in health.

Recently National has trumpeted $30 million of new funding for 50 doctors and more nurses.

They also announced a new fund of $12 million to pay for minor repairs, replacement appliances, and new books and toys for children undergoing treatment.

They are going to need more bureaucrats to administer these funds.

Reti initially suggested that the funding was new funding but had to back track. It is coming out of cuts.

Health professionals were less than impressed.

Dr David Galler, who worked as an intensive care specialist at Middlemore Hospital for more than 30 years, described the announcement as a “sticking plaster” and said that it won’t fundamentally change anything.

Northland doctor Gary Payinda described the contribution as a “drop in the bucket” compared to what is needed to provide safe and adequate healthcare.

From Lucy Xia at Radio New Zealand:

It corrects about 3 percent of the doctors shortage, and probably around 3-4 percent of the nursing shortage,” he said, citing the Health New Zealand’s 2023 workforce plan which estimated that the country was short of 1700 doctors.

Dr Payinda said he estimated the public hospitals across the country would each be getting about half to one doctor per facility.

“I can’t help but think it sounds a little bit like the Hunger Games, where desperate regions and desperate hospitals are being pitted against each other, for what is essentially a 3 percent correction of the shortage, so these are folks fighting for crumbs, and it’s sad,” he said.

…

“What we need to have is an open and honest discussion, that there’s the 97 percent that we need to fix, there’s a huge problem, and instead we hear from the leaders of healthcare, that, I can only describe it as gaslighting, where they at times have said we’re over-recruited and over-budgeted for nurses, never telling you that the budget was woefully unrealistic,” he said.

To add to this sense of doom is news that people needing hospital treatment are not even making it onto the waiting list.

From Ruth Hill at Radio New Zealand:

GPs say patients who desperately need hospital treatment are increasingly not even making it onto waiting lists.

An excerpt of a letter to a GP from Palmerston North Hospital’s orthopaedic clinic earlier this year – obtained by RNZ – confirms some referrals are being knocked back due to “lack of resources”:

“This decision is forced upon us by a lack of sufficient resources to enable us to see all patients referred to us within the limits of the Ministry of Health waiting time targets.”

Until recently, former Palmerston North mayor Heather Tanguay, 80, was one of those people living in limbo, waiting for a specialist appointment about her painful hip.

“I would lead a hīkoi, if I could, of those waiting for surgery, but sadly we would not make it – so many are now unable to leave their homes,” she said.

What better way to reduce a waiting list than to refuse to let people go onto it. What’s the bet at some stage Reti trumpets a reduction in the number of people on the country’s hospitals waiting list’s.

And to add to the peception that the Government wants to stop measuring the effectiveness of the Public Health System comes news of mass redundancies in the Health IT sector.

The PSA broke the news today that nearly 1,500 Te Whatu Ora jobs were to be cut, including 47 percent (1120 jobs) of the entire Data and Digital group and 24 per cent (358 roles) of the National Public Health Service.

Health IT is already in crisis. It relied on long standing contractors to keep the system running. Their positions have already gone. It looks like we are running out of the capacity to even turn computers on and off.

And the cost savings are way more than the miniscule amounts recently set aside for new doctors.

This is the direct consequence of National’s failure to fund Health adequately. There is very little fat to trim. All National has managed to do is cut into muscle. The consequences are clear.

Just think of the efficiencies that could occur if we had support staff rather than doctors answering phones or cleaning toilets. But then National would be forced to admit that its blitzkreig on back office staff and “wasteful spending” only showed that it did not know what it was talking about.

And the end goal appears to be privatisation. As pointed out by No Right Turn David Seymour has suggested that Act will focus on health next year and no doubt he will seek to privatise it. First of all run it into the ground, then claim that the only option is to privatise.

Can National please let the adults take over and restore Health to its former state. And they need to commit to above inflation rates of increase of funding that allows also for population increase and the greater needs of an ageing population. Anything less than this will make things worse.

18 comments on “National’s dodgy health announcements ”

  1. Kay 1
    27 November 2024 at 4:45 pm

    "You would except better from an apparently god faring Christian."

    As the US Republicans have shown us, it's NOT possible to be a RW politician and profess to being a person of genuine faith. They're 'Christians' when it suits them to be- getting votes from the gullible evangelicals, or imposing their 'morals' to create culture wars to distract from the fact that they don't have a clue about anything.

    We all know that genuinely religious people care about society, and many walk the talk. RW politicians can shout from the rooftops how devout they are, but actions, etc.

    Philippians 2:3–4

    "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others (Google search AI result)

    Chris really does need to swot up on his bible.

    Reply
  2. Mike the Lefty 2
    27 November 2024 at 4:47 pm

    Once again Shane Reti implies that it is extra money being allocated until forced to admit that it is existing money robbed from some other part of the health system.

    George Orwell's "Mini-Truth" in action.

    Reply
  3. Darien Fenton 3
    27 November 2024 at 5:03 pm

    A personal story. I have reason to visit the District Health Nurse Service a couple of times a week. Hopefully won't be for much longer. But every time, there is a shortage of supplies like bandages etc. Their computer calendar is wonky, so booking on-going appointments is difficult – not for me, but for these very busy nurses. And then, there's the sick leave replacements and ban on recruitment where nurses end up doubling up and doing more than ever. I hope they stick it to the govt come next Tuesday when they plan to strike. Didn't notice anything in Reti's announcement about dealing with safe staffing levels or a cost of living (at least) increase for nurses.

    Reply
  4. Georgecom 4
    27 November 2024 at 5:03 pm

    Reti got a rating 3 out of 10 last week in thr NZH when ministers were appraised on their efforts one year into the job. Nice man, ineffectual, unable to secure the funding health needs. David seymour can command resources for his ideological demands, Reti at the back of the queue for funding.

    We saw today that Te Whatu Ora has hired half of new graduate nurses, no money for the rest. The National Parts new billboard "Wave goodbye to our nurses at the airport, not waiting lists"

    Queues of nurses waiting in airport departure lounges get longer, as waiting list do as well.

    Reply
    • Georgecom 4.1
      27 November 2024 at 5:06 pm

      Two years ago Te Whatu ora was hiring 100% on new grad nurses apparently

      Reply
    • Mike the Lefty 4.2
      27 November 2024 at 7:04 pm

      Why doesn't Luxon simply appoint Seymour to the Minister of Everything? There isn't one department that he doesn't meddle in or have influence in to some degree. Why not be honest for once National (ha ha good joke) and admit he IS the government.

      Reply
      • georgecom 4.2.1
        27 November 2024 at 9:04 pm

        recently seymour was meddling in health, questioning the cost benefit ratio of the proposed new waikato medical school. reasonable thing to ask perhaps. however, lets have a look at the cost benefit ratio of charter schools david. or is he afraid of that question, might show nil benefit for $150 million spend. seems seymour isn’t keen on applying his own standards to his ideological projects

        Reply
  5. Incognito 5
    27 November 2024 at 5:07 pm

    Where on Earth will Reti find those doctors and nurses?

    https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/11/26/health-nz-funds-50-new-hospital-doctors-in-sleight-of-hand/

    When will they be appointed and start working on the bloody floor [pun intended]?

    Given that primary care is a bottleneck for patients and patient referrals, even the promised senior doctors and specialist nurses will be largely ineffectual aka change SFA.

    https://www.beehive.govt.nz/speech/funding-50-new-senior-doctors-more-nurses

    Reply
  6. tc 6
    27 November 2024 at 5:09 pm

    Cripple the already late and struggling transition to a single 21st century digital health entity as they don't need it.

    Reply
  7. thinker 7
    27 November 2024 at 5:50 pm

    If half of the data team is going bye-bye, is that a euphemism for outsourcing the function?

    Surely not, because this government championed cuts to the use of consultants.

    Reply
  8. mpledger 8
    28 November 2024 at 10:00 am

    It's the American Republican playbook. Stop measuring stuff so that people don't know how bad things are getting. Their other play is to stop speaking about the stuff that is measured so politicians can lie with impunity.

    Reply
  9. Hunter Thompson II 9
    28 November 2024 at 3:24 pm

    What is the justification for the staffing reductions? Someone, somewhere – some backroom boffin – must have written a report on which the cuts are based.

    Anyone know?

    Reply
  10. adam 10
    28 November 2024 at 9:11 pm

    You would except better from an apparently god faring Christian.

    Na, he 'ant nothing but a Mammonite.

    Reply
  11. Susie 11
    29 November 2024 at 2:38 pm

    Yeah, health matters.
    I read how in preparation for the upcoming conference, Chris Hipkins is reading seminal texts and priming up to maybe suggest a focus on Health for the election in two years' time. Jolly good.

    I have an overdue question for any engaged Labour folks here. Is it possible somehow to message the Labour Party on what New Zealand so much needs from them right now? While Hipkins focuses his efforts on contemplating the needs of Then, New Zealand is letting out a primal scream. By the time Then arrives, what will we have left?

    I recall Labour’s extraordinary tendency to focus on the Party while Country is being eaten by wolves. They did this straight after the election too, while the coalition passed the first raft of destructive new legislation. I truly wonder if Hipkins understands what an Opposition party is.

    Every day I’m reading the work of erudite bloggers and some news media, monitoring and summarising the appalling risk/threat we are under right now. This is a fabulous demonstration of intelligent, informed people gathering to express collectively what is wrong, with impeccable logic and compelling arguments. Sorry – – aren’t Labour politicians paid to do this while they are in Opposition?
    How did civil society and a small set of impoverished members of the Fourth Estate became the proxy for the Opposition?

    I wonder, truly, why anyone would vote Labour. The Party must claim its role – and speak up for itself. As one example, given Hipkins’ infuriating, foot-shuffling lack of substantive, assertive response, how would the majority of New Zealanders know that the party that is managing the economy badly is the one currently in power?
    All this matters, and is going to matter.

    At this point, all we see are terrifying instances of the coalition exceeding its powers, bypassing and dismantling democracy, erasing Maori, seemingly throwing $hundreds of thousands in the bin, destroying public services, removing environmental and social protections at every turn and inviting foreign owned predators to devour everything of value. Information on this abounds – ammunition customised for the Opposition to shoot (e.g. the open letter from the 16 economists). I sometimes wonder if Hipkins feels it would be impolite to mention all this. When called out on it, I recall he protested that the party says a lot in Parliament. What effing use is that?

    Unless we’re seeing Labour doing everything in its power, every hour, to call out what is happening, alert and educate the public and gather resistance against the destruction of New Zealand, why would voters believe that Labour would do anything of value for the country if they regain power?

    “It is not a long step from the absence of an organized Opposition to a complete dictatorship”.

    Yeah, well it just happened.

    When it comes to 2026, it will be a political party that needs to try to turn things around. And right now, the Opposition Labour party is the entity that is by far the best placed to embody that very thing – Opposition.

    Can Labour be reached by civil society voices? How?

    Reply

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