NEWS HR
May 31, 2017
A health professional has been suspended from practising for nine months, after his conviction for stealing a dangerous drug, known as “Jackson Juice” from Wairarapa Hospital. The Wairarapa practitioner, and a colleague, pleaded guilty in Masterton District Court in 2015 to a joint charge of stealing an anaesthetic named propofol – sometimes known as Jackson Juice because it was one of the drugs that killed pop star Michael Jackson in 2009. The man was also censured by the Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal, ordered to attend an ethics course, and disclose his conviction and the tribunal decision to current and any future employers for three years. The pair, who cannot be named, both worked for the Wairarapa DHB at the time and were arrested after a police operation. Police went to an address in September 2015, and found the woman inside with a tube in her arm, through which she was receiving the anaesthetic. Upon her arrest she told police the man had inserted the tube so she could administer the drug herself, which she had been doing for about a month, after suffering a shoulder injury. She told police she was taking it for anxiety problems, and to help her sleep. Masterton police said when the pair were arrested that the drug could easily have killed her. The tribunal, whose decision was published on Monday, said propofol, a sedative and short-acting anaesthetic agent that results in a decreased level of consciousness and lack of memory, is potentially dangerous, particularly in unsupervised hands. The man also admitted using the drug himself on occasions, because of the stress he was under. The total value of the theft was $4669. The man and the woman were both convicted by the court, and ordered to come up again if called upon. The tribunal said the man had not been practising for more than 18 months, and was having difficulty finding general healthcare work, such as in retirement homes, because of his convictions. He was working casually in a bread factory.
May 18, 2017
The findings of the 2016 Aged Care Workforce Survey have been released today and paint a picture of an industry plagued by stress, insecure hours, and inadequate pay.
May 11, 2017
A 42-year-old woman who stole jewellery from an elderly woman’s unit at a retirement village has been jailed for three years. Christchurch District Court Judge David Saunders noted Hinemoa Keen belatedly offered to speak to police about getting the boxes of jewellery back, as she faced sentencing. He said the elderly woman was devastated by the loss of the jewellery, which had sentimental value. Keen committed the opportunist raid on the unit at an Addington retirement village. “It was a gross invasion of her privacy. She was entitled to feel secure in her retirement unit,” said the judge, as he sentenced Keen for two burglaries, four charges of dishonestly using documents – a cheque and bank cards – and two thefts. Keen wept as she stood in the dock. She handed up a letter she wrote, apologising to her victims. Judge Saunders said she had a “shocking” history of similar offending. “Increasing terms of imprisonment will be imposed if you continue to offend in this way,” he told her.
April 28, 2017
Queenstown-based medical officer of health for Otago and Southland, Dr Derek Bell, has retired after nearly two decades in the role.
April 20, 2017
Residents at an Auckland retirement village are noticing a rise in random items being stolen from their front door steps. Sentimental ornaments, a bird bath and a chair are just some of the items being taken late at night, a resident says. The 76-year-old, who didn’t want to be named, says the burglaries have unsettled elderly residents at Elmwood Village in Manurewa. Village management says it’s dealing with the incidents “in house”. Some stolen items had been located on a Facebook buy and sell page.
April 12, 2017
Juliet Garcia loves her job at Switzer Residential Care in Kaitaia, but she couldn’t face it on Saturday. She stayed at home, in tears, fearing that if she stepped outside her door she would be arrested and deported. Ms Garcia and her husband have lived in Kaitaia for 10 years. He worked at Pak’nSave, while she has made a career in aged care. Every year she has renewed her work visa, at some expense but without difficulty, and both have paid for three-yearly health checks. This time her visa renewal has been declined. On Friday afternoon she received a letter from Immigration NZ saying that she had until Sunday to leave the country. Her husband, who is dependent upon her work visa, would have to go too. Their two sons, both of whom had been working, had to return to the Philippines when they reached the age of 21. The declining of Ms Garcia’s work visa has outraged Switzer general manager Jackie Simkins. “She has been a good and valued employee for 10 years,” she said. “She has a Level 3 National Certificate in Residential Care, and the final paper for her Level 4 diversional therapy training has just been couriered to Career Force. That will qualify her to work in the dementia unit, and entitle her to apply for residency under Immigration’s skills list. Telling her to go just doesn’t make sense. “And how can they give her 48 hours to pack up and leave? Her life is here. Her friends and her job are here. Telling her that she has two days to leave is ridiculous.” Ms Garcia has applied for a review of Immigration’s decision, but to do that she must remain in New Zealand, although as of yesterday neither she nor her husband are allowed to work. They have no income, and are afraid to leave their home. Last week the couple booked flights to return to the Philippines to see their second son graduate from university, but will not be going now, for fear of not being allowed back into the country. “That’s disgraceful,” Mrs Simkins said.
April 7, 2017
Glyn and Kathleen Hardy have been in a long-running dispute with a neighbour over her fence. Lawyers, an engineer and a consultant are among those being sucked into a six-year battle in a Christchurch retirement village. At the centre of the maelstrom is a wooden board and trellis fence. Retirees Glyn and Kathleen Hardy live on the opposite side of a shared driveway from neighbour Patsy Clegg in the Sanctuary Villas retirement subdivision in Christchurch. Clegg has a fence around her property bordering the driveway, and the Hardys wanted it pushed back to its original location when they moved in. The Hardys said they found it difficult to manouevre in and out of their garage, or down the shared driveway, without bumping into the fence or oncoming traffic. Glyn Hardy said the fence, which breaks body corporate rules because it encloses village land, was causing him stress. “This is the worst thing in my life coming in here. When I bought here there was nothing on that bend [of the driveway] at all.” Kathleen Hardy said the situation was having a detrimental effect on her husband’s health. “It’s killing him.” The couple, who have been petitioning the Sanctuary Villas body corporate since 2011, said they did not understand why the body corporate had not asked Clegg to push the fence back. “We’ve spent $1000 ourselves [on a consultant] and they said the fence has to come down,” Kathleen Hardy said. Body corporate chairman Paul Lyons said while Clegg had technically broken the rules, the situation was legally complicated. “It’s not a simple yes or no answer. When she bought the property there was a fence in position put in by the previous owner without body corporate consent. “She did break the rules under an honest impression she had rights.” Lyons said the issue involved several laws about privacy, resource consent and titles. Patsy Clegg said the ongoing fracas upset her and she felt she was being bullied by the Hardys. “They’re actually constantly putting in complaints all the time. It goes quiet, then they put in another complaint. “At the moment I’m working with the body corporate committee. There have been changes made to the fence already. “I’ve got no privacy front or back. It’s also a safety issue.” The body corporate did not indicate when the issue would be resolved because there were still several legal issues to conclude.
April 5, 2017
Australian-based technology solutions company Hills has appointed a new general manager to head its New Zealand business. Chris Whiting, most recently general manager sales for Armourguard Security in New Zealand and Fiji, has been appointed to the role with the task of expanding the company’s operations in the New Zealand market.
