Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie spoke with Nursing and Midwifery Union Branch Secretary Cath Hatcher about the December 20 border rule impact on nurses

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Katie spoke with Nursing and Midwifery Union Branch Secretary Cath Hatcher about the December 20 border rule impact on nurses · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Well throughout the morning. We have certainly heard from a
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  Speaker 1: lot of Territorians and a lot of different industries about
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  Speaker 1: these concerns when it comes to December twenty and the
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  Speaker 1: changes that we're going to see when it comes to
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  Speaker 1: our borders. Now joining me on the line is Kath Hatcher,
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  Speaker 1: the Branch Secretary for the Australian Nursing and Midwiffree Federation
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  Speaker 1: here in the Northern Territory. Good morning to you.
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  Speaker 2: Cath, Oh, Good morning Katie.
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  Speaker 1: Kath. What is the sentiment amongst our nurses that work
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  Speaker 1: in our remote communities, in some of our more regional areas,
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  Speaker 1: following on from that announcement that was made by the
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  Speaker 1: Chief Minister Thursday last week.
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  Speaker 2: They're feeling frustrated and they feel like that it's kind
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  Speaker 2: of to the last resorts. So they haven't had a Christmas.
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  Speaker 2: Most of them that have been coming to the office
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  Speaker 2: haven't had a Christmas where they've gone away back home
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  Speaker 2: to the state to see their family and friends. They're
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  Speaker 2: able to do that now the borders are opened up
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  Speaker 2: on all of the states and they're able to go home.
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  Speaker 2: Now they're realizing they're having to cut their leaves short
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  Speaker 2: or extend their leave so they can stay at home
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  Speaker 2: for at least fourteen days before they can go back
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  Speaker 2: to work.
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  Speaker 1: They've been yeah, sorry, do we have any idea. You know,
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  Speaker 1: the number of nurses that we've got that actually live
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  Speaker 1: in remote communities and work in remote and more regional communities,
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  Speaker 1: I would imagine it's quite a few.
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  Speaker 2: It is quite a few, but not all of them
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  Speaker 2: obviously will be taking leave over the Christmas eatbreak, but
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  Speaker 2: in fact think we'll go through out the whole of
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  Speaker 2: the Northern territory. So I've been in contact with some
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  Speaker 2: of the executive and of the Department of Health trying
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  Speaker 2: to ascertain whether this fourteen days is set in concrete
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  Speaker 2: or whether that's up from the negotiation. So we've had
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  Speaker 2: a chat the last few days, and there is some
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  Speaker 2: new research out to show that eight days is kind
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  Speaker 2: of the threshold. So if you contract the delta strain,
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  Speaker 2: the omnic strain, or the alpha strain, you should have
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  Speaker 2: contracted it in the first eight days. So if they
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  Speaker 2: come back from into state, they do the usual PDR
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  Speaker 2: testing three of them over that first six days, whether
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  Speaker 2: they have another one on day eight, and if they're
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  Speaker 2: all negative, they should be able to return to the
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  Speaker 2: community or return to wherever they're working in the healthcare sect.
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  Speaker 1: So, Kath, you reckon it is more about changing the
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  Speaker 1: way that you know, changing the number of days that
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  Speaker 1: they need to stay in say one of the major
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  Speaker 1: town centers, and the way in which that testing happens.
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  Speaker 2: Well, fourteen days is a long time, and your health
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  Speaker 2: staff are already going away and then they've got to
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  Speaker 2: do an extra fourteen days on top of that. You're
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  Speaker 2: going to have so many areas within the NT that
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  Speaker 2: are going to have more staff away or the same
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  Speaker 2: amount of staff but for longer periods of time. Unless
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  Speaker 2: they're cutting their time back and return to the territory
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  Speaker 2: earlier than they were going to, you know, exetrimental for them.
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  Speaker 2: They need to have that time away with their family
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  Speaker 2: and friends. Now they're either going to have to see
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  Speaker 2: if they can get more holidays on top of what
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  Speaker 2: they've already got, but if that's not sustainable within the
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  Speaker 2: work area, then they need to cut their time short.
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  Speaker 2: So eight days seems a little bit more realistic for
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  Speaker 2: them as well as for the workplaces than fourteen days,
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  Speaker 2: and it comes in line with the latest research Kathy.
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  Speaker 1: In its current form. If we go ahead with things
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  Speaker 1: the way that they are, with what the government announced
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  Speaker 1: on Thursday, come December twenty, do you think that we're
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  Speaker 1: going to see an impact on service delivery in some
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  Speaker 1: of our remote communities.
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  Speaker 2: I think you're going to see service delivery in all
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  Speaker 2: of the areas, not just remote, but within the rural
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  Speaker 2: and urban settings as well. You're going to see impact
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  Speaker 2: on all the services.
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  Speaker 1: Kathy, it does seem as though there needs to be
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  Speaker 1: a real relook at this and it's having you know,
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  Speaker 1: it's got so many people so concerned. What is your
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  Speaker 1: message for the government today. I mean, everybody is anticipating
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  Speaker 1: that they're going to be out and making some further
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  Speaker 1: changes to this, But what is your message to the
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  Speaker 1: government this morning?
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  Speaker 2: Well, I've heard there is whispers that things may change
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  Speaker 2: in a different direction by the weekend, so I hope
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  Speaker 2: that's the case. I completely understand that everyone is worried
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  Speaker 2: about going into state and returning and going back to
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  Speaker 2: either the hospitals or to remote clinics and being into
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  Speaker 2: state more at risk of picking up some variant of
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  Speaker 2: the COVID. Now, if they can do that in the
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  Speaker 2: eight days and do that in an area within their
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  Speaker 2: own home before they return, or within a high vaccinated
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  Speaker 2: area prior to going back to the community. Eight days
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  Speaker 2: is a little bit better than fourteen. It's it would
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  Speaker 2: help everyone that you know that they're making sure that
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  Speaker 2: everyone is not just the double vaccinated, which we're pretty
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  Speaker 2: good on that now, but having that eight days making
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  Speaker 2: sure that everyone is negative on returning to work or
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  Speaker 2: returning to communities.
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  Speaker 1: Well, Kath Hatcher. As always, I really appreciate your time.
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  Speaker 1: We may, well hopefully we might speak to you before Christmas.
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  Speaker 1: We'll have to wait and see. But if we don't
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  Speaker 1: speak to you before Christmas, thank you so very much
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  Speaker 1: for you know, for all the input and and all
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  Speaker 1: you know, the interviews that you've done with us throughout
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  Speaker 1: the year and the information that you've provided.
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  Speaker 2: A very welcome Katie and I hope you and your
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  Speaker 2: listeners have an awesome Christmas too.
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  Speaker 1: Thank you too. Thank you, Kath,