Illawarra hospitals insist they will find the dozens of new nurses needed to provide better care.
The assurance comes as new figures show the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District has recruited 37 of the 72 extra full-time nurses required to meet new nurse-to-patient ratios by July.
Unions could close hospital beds if the positions are not filled on time.
The former state Labor government last year agreed to higher staffing levels for a range of medical, surgical and mental health wards after the NSW Nurses’ Association argued it would improve patient safety and stop overworked nurses from resigning.
It means that by the middle of this year, Wollongong Hospital will require 32 new full-time nurses and Bulli, Port Kembla and Shoalhaven hospitals will each need more than seven.
Shellharbour, Coledale, David Berry and Milton Ulladulla hospitals each require between two and five new nurses.
The new employees will cost $7million.
Two fresh rounds of recruitment will take place over the next five months and more nurses will also have to be hired next financial year, although the number is still undecided.
A health district spokeswoman said recruitment had been deliberately phased in.
‘‘The challenge is to ensure that the balance of experienced nurses and those developing their clinical skills is well supported in the ward environment.’’
She said the health district was confident all 72 nurses would be hired by July.
However, the NSW Nurses’ Association believes many positions could have already been filled if ex-nurses returning after a break of more than five years did not have to pay a $10,000 retraining fee.
‘‘Over the last 10 years, nurses hemorrhaged from the profession because the workload was too great,’’ the union’s Illawarra delegate Angela Pridham said.
‘‘But the word has got out that it’s actually not as bad now, you can now look after four patients during the day and nurses are starting to think ‘maybe I will go back’, but soon encounter that $10,000 cost.’’
NSW Health offers 25 scholarships of $6000 to help previously enrolled or registered nurses re-enter the public health system.
Ms Pridham also questioned whether the health district had paid enough attention to mounting an effective advertising campaign to lure more nurses to the Illawarra.
According to the NSW Health employment website, nursing positions are available at hospitals stretching from the Illlawarra’s northern suburbs to the south of the Shoalhaven region.
There are 26 nursing-related positions being advertised at present.
Nurses’ Association acting assistant general secretary Judith Kiejda said the health district must employ more nurses as well as replace those lost through natural attrition.
Some 131 nurses ceased employment with the health district last financial year.
‘‘Thirty-seven new nurses across the entire health district is a good start but it isn’t a lot in the scheme of things, given the number that will be required to meet the ratios,’’ she said.
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