Doctor's callback from retirement reveals depth of health crisis: Nurses union

By Rachel Moore of RNZ

The nurses union says a doctor being called out of retirement after a clinic’s last GP resigned last month shows how appalling health shortages are.

Levin’s Taitoko Health has announced that Dr Andy van de Vyver will return to the clinic for five months, after retiring last year.

Van de Vyver served the community for 40 years at the clinic, previously known as Masonic Medical Centre.

Sources with experience working at the clinic have told RNZ his retirement was the start of difficulties at the clinic and of the “intense environment of burnout”.

Since his retirement, a dozen staff have left or given notice, including four GPs, among whom was the last remaining GP for the clinic, where 4500 patients were enrolled.

Taitoko Health is run by OmniHealth. Its clinics – owned through the Tararua Health Group – were put on a temporary freeze by Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora over concerns about workloads and patient safety.

Taitoko Health was run by OmniHealth. Its clinics were frozen by Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora over workload and patient safety concerns.

A New Zealand Nurses Union delegate said this was a sign of how bad the health crisis had become.

The crisis would continue if the Government did not put more money into the industry, the delegate said.

“All sectors are facing chronic staffing shortages. In primary care the funding shortages are appalling.

“The health system is in a desperate state and needs an urgent overhaul. It begins with properly funding primary care services.”