Barossa Hills Fleurieu Local Health Network

343 The Hon. N.J. CENTOFANTI (Leader of the Opposition) ().10 April 2024). Can the Minister for Health advise:

1. Why is the Barossa Hills Fleurieu Local Health Network (BHFLHN) offering to renew some community nurses' contract positions for just six months when their current contracts finish in June this year?

2. How many community nurses have been offered a six-month extension to their current contract by the BHFLHN?

3. How does offering community nurses contract extensions of six months assist in securing the BHFLHN's future workforce needs in the middle of a severe shortage of nurses nationwide?

4. What is the average length of a contract for a community nurse working for the BHFLHN?

5. What is the average time between advertising for a nurse to join BHFLHN and the nurse's first day on the job?

6. What is the annual turnover of nurses working for the BHFLHN?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector): The Minister for Health and Wellbeing has advised:

1. BHFLHN is working through improving the alignment of the community nursing positions. This process is expected to be finalised in the near future, with the intended outcome being the ability to offer longer term and permanent contracts to community nursing staff as required, once this transitional alignment and assessment period has passed.

2. Ten community nurses (including the Country Referral Unit) have been offered six-month contracts beyond their current temporary contract.

3. BHFLHN is providing reassurance and support to staff so that they may be retained as the network moves through this transitional alignment phase towards offering longer contracts and permanency.

4. The BHFLHN community nursing workforce is made up of:

Ongoing/permanent contracts: 49 per cent

Temporary contracts: 29 per cent

Casual contracts: 22 per cent

Of those subject to contract, the average length of those contracts in BHFLHN is nine months.

5. This data is not available to BHFLHN as there is no linkage between advertising data in the recruitment system and contract data in the HR/payroll system.

6. As at 31 March 2024, the annual turnover rate for nurses in BHFLHN is 6.6 per cent.