00:00Ever since the nursing and midwifery union raised the alarm about the impact of maternity
00:07staff shortages at the Royal Hobart Hospital, patients and midwives have been contacting
00:13the ABC.
00:14I was told they would break my waters on Monday.
00:17This didn't happen until Tuesday afternoon as there were no staff.
00:21The shift I was on last week, I had 13 women in my care.
00:25Nine of those women had newborn babies that were also in my care.
00:29This morning there are six midwives.
00:31A woman waiting to be induced is having her induction delayed due to the staffing shortages.
00:36Their stories stand in stark contrast to the health department's assurance that there's
00:42an appropriate level of staffing for the majority of shifts.
00:46We've found nothing that corroborates that information that the NMF has provided.
00:50Now the health minister has stepped in.
00:53I can confirm that I will establish an independent inquiry into maternity services at the Royal
00:58Hobart Hospital.
00:59We are concerned about the ongoing disconnect between what our members' experiences are
01:05and what the department are indicating in terms of safe staffing levels.
01:10So we feel that this is a really positive way forward.
01:13The union believes a review will help them establish the facts and more importantly develop
01:19recommendations to address the ongoing issues.
01:23The department has made it very clear that the concerns are serious.
01:29They are continuing to look into that.
01:33But I want a level of assurance from an independent person.
01:38The health minister says he's in close contact with the union and will be consulting them
01:42on the terms of reference and who should be appointed to undertake the investigation.
01:48While the union says its members were distressed by the health department's response, the
01:53health minister has given them hope.
01:55He is equally concerned by the reports and the concerns that our members are raising
02:00and he has absolutely a commitment and investment in ensuring that the review is done appropriately.
02:08The government says the report will be completed as soon as possible.
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