ANMF (Vic Branch) met with the Victorian Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas in August to follow up on, amongst other things, amendments to the Safe Patient Care Act (SPCA) that the state government committed to ahead of the 2022 Victorian election. These include improvements to postnatal, emergency department, coronary care ratios and the introduction of intensive care ratios.
The Branch has been repeatedly frustrated by several delays in this work – among them, delays stemming from the Department of Health questioning whether Victoria’s intensive care units have a nurse in charge.
The ANMF (Vic Branch) is also frustrated to report that there are ongoing delays with the delivery of the 2018 election commitment for a review of the hospital levels in SPCA.
Despite positive action made throughout 2023 towards the implementation of a process, the Department of Health have not progressed this work any further. This is vital for service delivery and workload improvements for a number of public sector hospitals – particularly those in the growing outer metropolitan and regional areas of Victoria.
It is critical that this work is prioritised alongside the ongoing growth in patient numbers, health service demand and patient complexity that is putting pressure on Victoria’s public hospitals and the nursing and midwifery workforce.
The Safe Patient Care Act is a legacy of the Victorian Labor Government that has, over the past decade, had a lasting and positive impact on recruitment and retention of nurses and midwives in Victoria.
ANMF (Vic Branch) will continue to ensure that this work is on the agenda and progressed through both the Victorian Health Minister and the Department of Health.
It is critical that the workload and workforce benefits continue and this round of government commitments to improve the SPCA are expedited, ensuring the government continues to acknowledge the importance of the healthcare provided by Victoria’s skilled nurses and midwives.
