Honey mustard chicken sausage rolls & Chicken stir-fry with cashews, chilli and broccoli

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Nursing Boost Commences in Regional Hospitals

Lismore Base Hospital will be among the first regional hospitals in NSW to implement the new Safe Staffing Levels, with recruitment underway for approximately 29 full-time equivalent (FTE) additional nurses to meet these requirements in its emergency department (ED). Port Macquarie Base Hospital is also recruiting as part of this initiative.

The staffing boost at Lismore and Port Macquarie Base Hospitals aims to establish a one-to-one nursing care ratio for generally occupied ED resuscitation beds on all shifts and a one-to-three ratio for generally occupied ED treatment spaces and ED short-stay unit beds on all shifts.

This initiative follows discussions with the Safe Staffing Levels Taskforce, established to oversee the Government’s commitment to adding the equivalent of 2,480 full-time employees over four years. The Taskforce includes key leaders from the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA), NSW Health, and local health districts.

The implementation of safe staffing levels will occur in phases over the next three years, initially commencing in Level 5 and Level 6 EDs, which treat the most critically ill patients, and then progressively rolling out to other hospitals and departments.

The Safe Staffing Levels Taskforce will review the initial rollout at these facilities to help inform future implementations.

In addition to implementing safe staffing levels, the NSW Government is embracing several measures to build a more supported health workforce, including:

1. Abolishing the wages cap and delivering the highest pay increase in over a decade for nurses and other health workers.
2. Rolling out 500 additional paramedics in regional, rural, and remote communities.
3. Introducing the health worker study subsidies scheme.

Quotes attributable to Regional Health Minister Ryan Park:

“The rollout of Safe Staffing Levels aims to improve the experience of our patients and staff and boost retention, capacity, and capability in our hospitals. The Safe Staffing Levels initiative involves the introduction of minimum staffing levels on every shift, which will result in more nurses employed in hospitals right across the state. The rollout began earlier this year at Liverpool Hospital and Royal North Shore Hospitals, with Port Macquarie Base Hospital and Lismore Base Hospital now coming on board. Importantly, this reform will deliver improved nursing numbers to provide care for patients while supporting our frontline healthcare staff. I look forward to working with representatives from the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association and NSW Health as part of the Safe Staffing Levels Taskforce as they review this rollout and use these experiences to help inform safe staffing levels implementation at future sites.”

Quotes attributable to Member for Lismore Janelle Saffin:

“This initiative aims to support the attraction and retention of health staff to Lismore and the Northern NSW Local Health District to help ensure local patients have better access to safe, high-quality care. This will make a big difference to nurses in the emergency department at Lismore Base Hospital, and be a major benefit for everyone in the community who requires emergency care at the hospital.”

For more local Lismore news, click here.

Greyhound runt wins maiden race

By Samantha Elley

Australians love nothing more than a good underdog story and the life of Butcher is definitely that.

Butcher had a tough beginning when he was born the runt of the greyhound litter belonging to Lyndall Beaumont and Brad Northfield of Backmede.

“He was the runt but also his mother rolled over and lied on him,” said Lyndall.

“We thought he was dead as he was lifeless.

“(Brad) was going to the greyhound committee and he said, ‘He’s dead. Throw him in the bin.’ He was used to it.”

But Lyndall knew she couldn’t do that, so she wrapped the puppy up warm and started massaging him.

“He came back to life!” she said

“I got an eye dropper and got special milk from the vet and I took him to bed for the next two weeks and got up every few hours, like a baby, and gave him a few drops of milk.”

Butcher with his owners Courtesy Casino Greyhound Racing Club Facebook page

Lyndall said Butcher was so tiny he fit in the palm of her hand.

“Brad told me to put him back with his mother, and she rolled on him again,” said Lyndall.

“So from then on I said I was keeping him inside.”

Butcher, which is his racing name, is now a normal size for a greyhound.

He was named after David ‘Butcher’ McLeod, for all his help during trialling at the race track.

“(Butch) goes above and beyond with the trials,” said Lyndall.

“He always wanted someone to call a dog after him, so we called ours Butcher.”

Earlier this month, Butcher showed what he was made of when he won his maiden race at the Casino Greyhound races.

Brad has admitted to the Casino Greyhound Racing Club that none of that would have been possible if not for Lyndall nursing Butcher back to life and willing the puppy to survive.

“(Butcher is) special,” said Lyndall.

“It is like he is human.”

Lyndall knows there is more to come in Butcher’s racing career.

For more local news, click here.