Are minimum nurse-to-patient ratios the fix to New Zealand's nursing shortage?

Coming out of a difficult winter period for hospitals, New Zealand’s nursing shortage has become an election issue.

New Zealand currently uses Care Capacity Demand Management, which calculates staffing requirements according to patient needs, to determine nursing numbers.

But Andrew Jull, Professor of Nursing at the University of Auckland, argues the evidence from NZ and overseas now makes a strong case for putting minimum nurse-to-patient ratios into law. 

Jull told Kerre Woodham the advantage to having minimum nurse-to-patient ratios is it stops the government from stopping the flow of nurses, allowing for a consistency of health investment. 

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