Christchurch's Pegasus Health emergency doctors clinic has had to shut down for an afternoon after staff shortages were exacerbated Photo: 123RF
Christchurch's only 24-hour doctors surgery is to close again due to staff illness and staff shortages.
Pegasus Health's Madras Street clinic would not be open from 3.30pm until midnight on Monday 28 August.
The clinic also closed on several other occasions in recent months due to staff shortages.
"Today was staff sickness that tipped it over, but we have an ongoing issue with nursing shortages" - Lisa Brennan
Pegasus Health general manager of services Lisa Brennan said they had an ongoing nursing shortage, but on Monday illness had pushed them over the edge.
"Today we've had a number of doctors ring in sick, in fact four for that afternoon shift. So, on top of our nursing shortage, it is just too unsafe to keep it open."
One of the doctors who called in sick had Covid-19 and it was an ongoing issue for all health services, she said.
It was hard to turn people away when they had to close, but they tried to provide other options such as online video consultations or referring people to a pharmacy or the emergency department where appropriate, Brennan said.
There were 320 GPs across Canterbury which were affiliated with Pegasus Health surgery and they had been asked to manage patients themselves if possible, or to book them in at a later date, she said.
She said they were finding it difficult to recruit nurses as they could not compete with the wages offered by Te Whatu Ora and it also meant they were losing a number of staff.
Brennan said they were in discussion with Te Whatu Ora about their funding, and hoped that would resolve the wage gap.
"Those conversations are going very well and they continue to be quite positive so we're hopeful of a good resolution there.
"And then that will help us to pay the same rates as the hospital, or similar, so we don't have that big differential and so the nurses will then be able to stay with us."
There was a big difference in hospital nurses' pay compared to all other nurses in primary care, such as GP's nurses, nurses in the aged care sector and district nurses, she said.
Te Whatu Ora regional interim head of funding and planning Greg Hamilton said they were aware of the need for the 24 hour surgery to close its doors on Monday.
Workforce shortages were a global issue and Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury was doing all it could to ensure care remained available to those who need it, he said.
"Christchurch Hospital's emergency department will continue to offer emergency care 24/7, with priority given to those with the most urgent requirements," Hamilton said.
"If people don't need immediate emergency care, we encourage them to access appropriate alternative care options.
"We encourage people to call their usual general practice or speak to their local pharmacist for health advice. People can [call] Healthline on 0800 611 116 any time of the day or night for advice on what to do and where to go if they do need to be seen urgently."