Ms JENNY AITCHISON (Maitland) (21:25): Before I start I acknowledge Amara Henson, who has done some casual work in my electorate office this week. She has been really helpful in communicating with our community. I put on record my appreciation for the help she provides to our office. Unfortunately the happy part of my contribution is over. Tomorrow the Maitland branch of the Nurses and Midwives' Association will walk out of Maitland Hospital. They are taking serious action because they have been pushed beyond the limits of endurance. I massively support the NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association along with its members of nurses, midwives and all our health staff. We have stood together year after year fighting against the privatisation of Maitland Hospital, fighting for more staff and fighting for those health workers to be able to give the care to patients that they want to provide.

Recent Bureau of Health Information [BHI] data has confirmed what we all know: More than one in five patients who present at the emergency department seeking help leave before they receive treatment. That is a real concern and it is the highest rate in the State. Imagine if one in five customers of a business walked away. We would say that that business is failing massively. But this is not just about getting a service; this is about addressing people's health needs. One in five people who go to emergency for medical attention just leave because they are not going to be seen. Pejorative statements are made about people who overuse emergency departments because of the chronic shortage of GPs. I understand that, but the issue is that when I speak to those people they have had major falls, they are elderly and they should have sought medical attention but they have not.

The Bureau of Health Information data has also confirmed that our nurses and midwives are working in an unsafe environment. We all know that when emergency departments are failing, it is a sign that the entire hospital is under too much pressure, and that impacts on everyone in the health system. That is why ambulances are crammed together outside emergency departments, trying to get patients into those waiting rooms, while other people who may be having heart attacks are waiting for ambulances to arrive. It is not good enough. Today the Opposition asked the Minister for Regional Health in the other place for a response to that BHI data. She failed to give an adequate answer. She blamed a lack of GPs and access to aged care but completely failed to take responsibility for the fact that the Government has failed to fund our hospitals and staffing adequately. It is not acceptable.

Anyone who has been to hospital recently will say that our health and hospital system is overstretched. The waiting rooms are full, and one feels for the paramedics, nurses, doctors, midwives and all other health staff who are doing a fantastic job under trying circumstances. They are telling me about these issues in droves. I have had many people reach out to me on the issue, but we cannot get any more staffing, which is ridiculous. The vast majority of those representations—I would say 99 per cent—expressed the dedication and care of nurses. There was nothing but praise for hospital staff. But what happens when those representations are made to the health district? They go to the Minister, the Minister's office passes it on to the local health district and the nurses, midwives and other health staff are then told that they were deficient—how disgusting. How can they be deficient when they are running around trying to cover the gaps in staffing?

I cannot believe the fact that those staff are then criticised. They have been told, "If you had been doing your job well enough, no-one would notice that we are understaffed." That is outrageous. Some 12 years of understaffing and those health workers are giving everything—this is their life's work and they are dedicated to our patients. The Government risks a complete failure. Health workers cannot continue on and on every day. Hospitals are always short staffed and those workers are always being sent text messages asking them to come back to work or not to take any leave and to keep working double shifts because everyone else has been worked out of the system. That is what is happening. The Government is not being responsible. There is a $500,000 asset in that hospital and yet people are being left in pain because of mismanagement. I cannot make the rally tomorrow, but I stand with every nurse, midwife and health worker in my electorate. I will support them to the end.