It’s time for New Zealand to face up to the hard truths of how our health system is leaving people behind, writes paediatrician Jin Russell. In an almost apocryphal account, my mother often tells the story of how once in the 1970s, after great rains, parts of Christchurch flooded. Their home, although mercifully elevated above … Read more
Summer reissue: In the third episode of all new Bad News, Alice recounts her overwhelmingly positive experiences with the health system and wonders: why isn’t it the same for all New Zealanders? First published August 18, 2020. Independent journalism depends on you. Help us stay curious in 2021. The Spinoff’s journalism is funded by its … Read more
Some of the smartest people in the country examine the effects of the pandemic on Aotearoa’s future in 400 words or fewer. Read part one here. Beyond the horrific global death toll and the economic shutdowns, there is hope that Covid-19 will allow us to build a better society in the future. While much of … Read more
The pandemic has only exposed the systemic healthcare inequities that already existed, write two NZ health professionals working on the Covid response at opposite ends of the world. Far from being some “great leveller”, the Covid-19 pandemic has proven to be more like water in a New Zealand rental home: seeping into all of the … Read more
In all my dealings with the healthcare system I’ve received incredible service – so why isn’t this the case for all New Zealanders? Watch Alice Snedden’s Bad News – Healthcare Inequity and other episodes in the series here. When I was in primary school one of my great brags was that I’d never been to … Read more
In the third episode of all new Bad News, Alice recounts her overwhelmingly positive experiences with the health system and wonders: why isn’t it the same for all New Zealanders? With an average lifespan seven years shorter than Pākehā, Māori have long suffered systemic inequity in our healthcare system. Alice, on the other hand, hasn’t … Read more
The Covid-19 pandemic has seen doctors and nurses cast as heroes battling a villainous virus. It may be well-intentioned, but it’s a narrative that serves no value, writes ICU doctor Alex Kazemi. In a foyer in Southampton General Hospital in the UK hangs a one-metre-square artwork, donated by the street artist Banksy during the time … Read more
Budget 2020: While the cost of Covid-19 means crown debt will increase dramatically, setting the right priorities means the economy can recover sooner. The government should have two priorities in this budget. First, and most importantly, the health system needs to be ready for the medium-to-long term changes that the pandemic has forced on the … Read more
In alert level two, a slew of hospital and GP services become available again. That presents a challenge to get back to normal, and ‘normal’ should not be what we are seeking in any case, write Richard Hamblin and Carl Shuker of the Health Quality & Safety Commission. Surgeries have been halted. Hip and knee … Read more
Dr Alex Kazemi, an ICU specialist, writes here in his personal capacity on the opportunity Covid-19 provides to rebuild our healthcare system. The tooth fairy never showed. My daughter had written a note – “You are invited to a tea party on Saturday at 10.30. If you cannot come please leave this note behind” – … Read more
A month ago, not many had heard of Ashley Bloomfield. But as the Covid-19 response has ramped up, the director-general of health has become a calm, reassuring presence in a time of uncertainty and fear. Rachel Thomas profiles him, in a piece first published on RNZ. Today, Saturday, director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield is … Read more
It’s difficult enough caring for coronavirus patients, but when healthcare providers become sick themselves, or are forced into self-quarantine, it becomes even harder to cope. So how is New Zealand preparing for staff shortages in the health system? News that 43 hospital staff have been put into self-quarantine after coming into close contact with a … Read more
His idea to reprocess used medical devices is already helping reduce waste in the New Zealand healthcare sector. Now Oliver Hunt of Medsalv discusses plans for the future and what’s needed for a small business to hum. In healthcare, the need for sanitation and sterility has dictated a throwaway culture, where millions of single-use devices … Read more
Rates of antidepressant medication dispensing are on the rise among young people, according to a new study published in the New Zealand Medical Journal today. What can this tell us about our prescribing habits and the demographics missing out? According to an article in the New Zealand Medical Journal, the rates of antidepressant dispensing (the … Read more
A genetic test showing how people respond to common medicines has the potential to revolutionise the way doctors prescribe drugs. Business editor Maria Slade reports. Sleeping has never been my strong suit. Throughout my adult life I’ve tried everything from hypnosis and hot milk to yoga and the droning narrations of the History Channel, with … Read more
A Canterbury startup is exposing medical equipment manufacturers’ deliberate one-use design tricks and proving that hospitals can reuse and recycle. There has been a lot of hype about the phasing out of plastic bags at supermarkets. But what about far more expensive items which only ever get used once and are then thrown away? A … Read more
Jacinda Ardern announced the first part of the government’s cancer plan which is set to impact many in the regions. Not quite following? Here’s what you need to know. So, what’s the big news? The big news is that the government has announced that cancer patients in Hawke’s Bay, Taranaki and Northland will, for the … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week he talks to John Macaskill-Smith, CEO of virtual health company Ventures. … Read more
What role can technology play in our overburdened, underfunded health system? Jihee Junn spoke to some of the innovators working to ease the pressure on healthcare in New Zealand. Health has become a major focal point for the tech industry in recent years and nowhere has this been more apparent than at CES, the annual … Read more
Healthcare workers experience more violence than any other job in New Zealand. A nurse writes about her experiences in ED wards around the country, and what needs to change. I don’t work as an ED nurse to be assaulted. I go to work to help people. Unfortunately, the two currently seem inseparable. Violence and aggression towards … Read more
Opposition to a new online homecare service could be a sign of things to come, as the ageing population pits workers’ employment rights against the right of older people to choose who cares for them. Wellington homecare worker Jane* once had an elderly man yell at her and order her to leave the house. Another … Read more
We’re fighting a losing battle for patient safety, says this Auckland nurse – and it’s everyone’s problem. There’s been a lot of chin scratching by the political-pundit class in New Zealand about the nurses strike lately. Why, do they wonder, have nurses waited to take industrial action until a more labour-friendly government is in power? … Read more
Māori, Pacific and low income groups have health outcomes well below the rest of the population. In Dunedin there’s a community that’s come up with the medicine to treat itself. On the grounds of an old school in the South Dunedin suburb of Caversham, there’s a village of healthcare services that’s a vision into a … Read more