Nurses and Midwives

Mr BOYER (Wright) (15:26): I take this opportunity to add to the contributions already made today by the members for Hurtle Vale and Kaurna in recognising the fantastic work our nurses and midwives do in South Australia. Firstly, I acknowledge the visitors we have with us in the gallery today. It is wonderful to see you and, as the member for Hurtle Vale mentioned, you are all fantastic ambassadors for your profession.

I have no doubt that there have been many testing times in all your careers, and probably there are more to come, things that will stay with you on good days and bad, but through all of that you continue to help people when they are most vulnerable. For everything you have done and continue to do, and on behalf of the residents of the seat of Wright, who I represent in this place, I say: thank you for your work.

I want to reflect briefly upon the occasions when my wife and I relied on the care and advice of a nurse or midwife. Our three girls were all born at the Women's and Children's Hospital. Our first child, Evelyn, was followed by identical twin girls, Billie and Rose, just 21 months later. I think it is fair to say, and I am sure people in this chamber would agree with me, that all new parents have their struggles. My wife still to this day speaks in glowing terms about the care and advice we received from the midwives at the Women's and Children's Hospital during that time.

It is also fair to say that although doctors have many skills, they are probably not renowned for their bedside manner. This is probably an area in which nurses often really excel. Both during and after the births of our three daughters, we found that nurses had very unique skills when it came to engaging new mothers and petrified new young fathers, as I was, in a way that relaxes them, sets them at ease and gets them to share with the hospital staff how they are feeling. We know issues around anxiety, feelings of inadequacy and helplessness after the birth of a child are very common and that often people are very reluctant to talk about it and therefore they go home without seeking any help and try to muddle through on their own.

I know I speak on behalf of not only my wife but many parents when I say that we should take every opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the skills of nurses and midwives in situations like this. We should acknowledge their ability to befriend patients and get them to open up in a way that has a very positive health outcome for them and their family. It is certainly a very under-appreciated skill.

I did want to turn briefly to the disturbing incident we had recently at the Lyell McEwin Hospital, a few weeks ago now, when a nurse was assaulted. I feel that this opportunity today should not pass by without mention being made of that incident. I think it is incumbent upon all of us in this place, in the privileged position we have, to make sure that we do everything we can to keep staff safe at work and, where we can, safe on their way to and from work.

I think it is fair to say that it is a challenging time for your profession. I speak to a lot of nurses, not just at events, or when visiting hospitals in my role as assistant shadow minister, but also out doorknocking in the community. A recurring theme I hear is that ice, which I think is now at epidemic proportions, has dramatically increased the number of violent patients presenting to emergency departments. I see a lot of nodding heads in the gallery. This is really a challenge over and above the more traditional challenges that have already been mentioned by the members for Hurtle Vale and Kaurna.

I am pleased to see the member for Elizabeth is championing new protections for our front-line workers that include specific offences as opposed to existing aggravated offences to do more to make sure that staff on the front line are safe at work. These are more vital now than ever, particularly in light of that ice epidemic confronting us. In fact, recent wastewater data from the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, collected in December 2018 and released just two weeks ago, shows that Adelaide still has the highest concentration of methamphetamine of any Australian capital. We need to be doing more.

It was the now Leader of the Opposition, the then minister for police, who formed the ice task force to look specifically at these issues. I know I speak on behalf of all members on this side of the chamber when I say that it was very disappointing to see a budget delivered two weeks ago that did not seem to have any new money or any new initiatives to tackle that epidemic. Of course, as the member for Kaurna mentioned, that very same budget included an enormous hike in car parking costs at hospitals. At Modbury Hospital, which services much of the area I represent, that equates to a $725 increase per year for staff. My fear is that will result in staff parking further and further away from their workplace.

I briefly conclude by commending the member for Hurtle Vale for taking the lead on acknowledging nurses today. I urge all members of this house to use the opportunity not just to reflect on the vital work that nurses and midwives do every day but to think about ways we can do more to support them and make sure that they are safe at work.