A national shortage of midwives is being felt in Waitakere city. New Zealand Nurses Organisation organiser Christine Gallagher says midwives working for the Waitemata District Health Board are facing added work pressures as a result. “The board needs to address this urgently,” she says. Board general manager of child, woman and family services Linda Harun says the Waitakere and North Shore hospitals are short of 17 fulltime midwives. This translates to about eight positions at Waitakere Hospital and nine at North Shore. Mrs Harun says the shortage of experienced practitioners has been a problem for the past couple of years but says plans have been put in place to address the issue. Strategies include a first year of practice mentorship programme and an international recruitment scheme. Read more…