Nurses call for the MILITARY to be deployed in Australian hospitals to relive health system staff

Nurses call for the MILITARY to be deployed in Australian hospitals to relive staff as health system ‘buckles’ under Omicron wave

• Nurses in Victoria have asked for military support in hospitals across the state
• Comes as health staff are stretched to the limit due to Omicron strain of Covid
• Comes after state government recently declared a ‘code brown’ emergency 
• The level of emergency will be introduced from 12pm, Wednesday January 19 

By Andrew Prentice For Daily Mail Australia

Published: 20:26 GMT, 18 January 2022 | Updated: 21:07 GMT, 18 January 2022

Nurses have called for the military to be deployed in Australian hospitals as the health system continues to struggle with the Omicron strain of Covid-19.

The Victoria’s nurses’ union are adamant hospitals require urgent military support to keep running after the state government declared a ‘code brown’ emergency on Tuesday.

Deputy Premier James Merlino said the code brown declaration was necessary to provide relief to hospitals struggling to cope with record admission numbers.

‘We have reached a point in our healthcare system where it’s juggling extreme workforce shortages alongside a vast number of patients with Covid-19 who require hospitalisation,’ Mr Merlino said.

‘Alongside that is an extraordinary workforce that are absolutely exhausted.’

Nurses in Victoria have called for the military to work out of hospitals as the health system continues to struggle with the Omicron strain of Covid-19

The Victoria’s nurses’ union are adamant hospitals require urgent military support to keep running after the state government declared a ‘code brown’ emergency on Tuesday (pictured, a paramedic outside St Vincent’s Hospital in Melbourne)

Victorian Deputy Premier James Merlino said the code brown declaration was necessary to provide relief to hospitals struggling to cope with record admission numbers as Covid cases numbers continue to rise (pictured, Australian Army personnel)

This is the first time a statewide code brown has been declared in Victoria for all major hospitals.

Hospital and emergency services are at breaking point, with countless medical wards running with skeleton staff due to coronavirus exposure numbers.

As of Tuesday, just over 4000  of Victoria’s public healthcare workers were unable to work because they had been exposed or infected with Covid-19.

The code brown declaration, which applies to all metropolitan as well as six regional hospitals, allows hospitals to cancel workers’ leave and also redeploy staff to priority areas, according to The Age. 

Paul Gilbert, assistant secretary at the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation’s Victorian branch, is adamant the declaration isn’t enough, calling on the federal government to urgently introduce military support. 

‘We are in a crisis and we need a crisis intervention,’ he said. ‘This is one clear source of additional support that we cannot be lacking.’

Australian Medical Association national president Omar Khorshid said the code brown response in Victoria shows the national policy has failed.  

‘Why they let this happen is beyond us,’ he said. ‘This was absolutely predictable.’

The code brown announcement came after Australia recorded 77 deaths from Covid, the largest number since the pandemic began.  

What is a code brown?

• Code brown is a measure to relieve pressure on hospitals

• It is usually reserved for sudden, short-term emergencies, such as a train crash or bushfire

• During a code brown, hospitals can cancel their staff’s leave to ensure an adequate workforce is on hand

• They can also defer less urgent services

• This code brown in Victoria starts at noon on Wednesday, January 19 and is expected to last between four and six weeks

• It will apply to all metropolitan public hospitals – with private hospitals able to call their own code brown if necessary

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