Concerns over patient safety on the West Coast have prompted the New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki O Aotearoa to join a march in Buller on Saturday to raise awareness of the dire state of the health system.

West Coast urgent GPs clinics end this weekend. From 1 October Ka Ora Telehealth will be providing after hours primary care and patient will need their referral to see a doctor.

NZNO Kaiwhakahaere Kerri Nuku says the closure of the West Coast urgent care GP clinic will put more pressure on Buller Hospital, which is already stretched. 

"Relying on telehealth services out of hours jeopardises patient safety.

"Aotearoa’s health system is in crisis and the understaffing in our hospitals and health care settings continues unabated with this Government’s obsession with cutting costs.

"There is a chronic shortage of thousands of nurses throughout the country which is contributing to increased wait times in Emergency Departments and compromising the quality of patient care.

"That’s why NZNO will stand proudly alongside our fellow health care organisations on Saturday and urge the Government to better fund health care. Nursing care is an investment, not a cost," Ms Nuku says.

Ms Nuku will speak at the march which has been organised by Buller Health Action Group and Patient Voice Aotearoa. Other speakers include Malcolm Mulholland of Patient Voice Aotearoa, and Sarah Dalton, executive director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists.

Media are invited to attend Saturday’s march:

When: Midday, Saturday 28 September

Where: Victoria Square, Westport

There will be a silent march from the grandstand via Brougham and Palmerston streets to the clock tower