HOSPITAL STAFFING

Dominion, Volume 38, Issue 23, 21 October 1944, Page 6

HOSPITAL STAFFING

Shortages In All Sections At Wellington MANPOWER DIRECTIONS The staffing position of the Wellington Hospital Board was one that had caused the district manpower officer some considerable concern for over two years. The shortage of staff applied to every section and to every institution under the board’s control, said Mr. D. R. Rankin, representing the district manpower officer, when a number of appeals against direction to the domestic staff of the hospital were heard yesterday by the Wellington Industrial Manpower Committee. There was an acute shortage of nursing staff and a campaign was under way to recruit young women, he continued. The manpower office had endeavoured to assist by providing voluntary aides for one month’s duty during each year. As far as domestic staff was concerned the numerflus directions which had been made bad, to a large extent, been offset by the loss of employees due to the normal wastage that occurred in the use of female labour. Girls had been directed from provincial and country centres, and accommodation provided in the department’s hostels, and every effort had been made to divert local labour wherever possible, in relation, of course, to the pressing needs of other priority requirements within the Wellington district. At the present time, iu view of the growing seriousness of the position, every eligible person who became available from any type of employment was being considered for duty at the hospital, with the solitary exception of skilled tradeswomen.

Workers urgently required at the Wellintgon Hospital totalled 118, consisting of kitchen staff (54), domestic staff (54) and laundry (12). “With its present staff, the hospital board should be servicing some 300 fewer beds than it is doing today, which would mean that it should, with its available staff, be turning away some 500 patients a month,” Mr. Rankin said. “The need to satisfy these existing vacancies is urgent and pressing and the position will be even more aggravated very shortly with the opening of the Silverstream Hospital. For this an additional number of approximately 40 domestic staff will be required and only 12 are available at the moment.

“Holidays are now due for girls who have been directed to-this employment from other districts and who are enttitled to their animal vacation. To meet this position the manpower officer is directing a number of university students to the hospital for one month’s duty during their vacation. This action will not alleviate in any way the staffing shortage, but will merely permit existing staff to take their holidays.”