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Health NZ scraps Code Black alert for emergency departments in crisis

Published

2 years ago

September 12, 2024

Health New Zealand has scrapped the highest Code Black alert used by some emergency departments to show when they are critically overcrowded or understaffed.

The agency said its new ED At A Glance system was about getting a “nationally consistent” approach – but some doctors suspected it was intended to make conditions look better than they really were.

Crowded EDs had been hitting Code Black when they reached more than 145 percent of maximum occupancy.

Internal documents seen by RNZ showed that alert was gone and the thresholds for other levels had been pushed higher.

Code Red – when care capacity was considered “critically reduced” – had jumped from 120 percent to over 135 percent.

One emergency doctor, whom RNZ has agreed not to name, said it was “just moving the goal posts”.

“Code Red requires 135 percent overload. That means patients backing up into the waiting room and corridors, and ambulances backed up as well.”

The new ED alert system used colour-coded steps to trigger action to ease pressure, usually caused by a shortage of hospital beds or lack of staff.

Responses could include bringing in extra staff, discharging patients from ED or hospital wards, or even postponing elective procedures, when a hospital was completely gridlocked.

The Resident Doctors Association, which represents trainee specialists and junior doctors, said the new system appeared to have been rolled out “almost under the radar”.

National secretary Deborah Powell likened it to “applying wallpaper to a great hole”.

“I suspect this is just them trying to sanitise news. It makes no difference to occupancy, it’s just the optics of it. And it doesn’t help front-line staff.

“The fundamental problem [in ED] is insufficient beds and insufficient staff, which leads to high occupancy and reduced turnaround of patients – or worse, pushing patients out too early which, results in ‘bounce backs’.

“Pushing the limits out so we record less escalation is not diminishing the occupancy rates – it is simply hiding them a little more.”

The new system could even add to the pressure in ED because conditions had to be worse before there was a response, she said.

“As you climb through the escalation pathway, things kick into gear to try to free the system up.

“I don’t know if it is particularly effective because we’re just stuck. We don’t have enough beds and we don’t have enough staff.”

The Australasian College for Emergency Medicine did not have an official position on the new system.

However, its New Zealand chair, Dr Kate Allan, agreed EDs needed more resources, however that happened.

“We know that there are workforce issues at some of our rural hospitals, but all the emergency departments with which I’m in contact are under pressure with long wait-times and overcrowding.”

A senior consultant – who wished to remain anonymous – said getting national consistency could be helpful.

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s colour-coded green, pink or purple, as long as it recognises when there’s a threat to care and it triggers the necessary response. That’s the important thing.”

That doctor was hopeful that a new acute care advisory group within Health NZ would bring positive change.

A Te Whatu Ora spokesperson said the agency was in the process of improving the “sometimes disparate” data reporting systems used by former district health boards to make them nationally consistent.

The status of a hospital and ED was dynamic and its status could “change back and forth in minutes over the course of a 24-hour period”, she said.

“Hospitals are experienced at managing these changes and have processes in place to support this.

“Providing care to the local community remains our priority and to be clear, we never turn people away from EDs in any hospital across New Zealand when they need our care.”

Health NZ director of health targets Duncan Bliss said all districts were now using the national framework.

“The triggers for escalation are determined nationally and trigger levels set locally, ensuring hospitals can apply their own expertise and decision making.

“The aim is to ensure the best possible care for our patients, and best use of our dedicated kaimahi.

rnz

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Rugby League: Kangaroos edge Kiwis in World Cup classic 24 -22

Published

4 weeks ago

October 16, 2026

News Staff

In one of the most stunning starts to a sporting tournament, the Kiwis and Kangaroos played out an absolute classic to kick off the Rugby League World Cup.

It was match chock full of barely believable moments, dramatic twists and turns, and superstars stepping up on the biggest stage, with Australia holding on for an enthralling 24-22 win.

Though unlikely to affect the Kiwis semi-final hopes, the loss may come at a different cost, with Kalyn Ponga forced from the field with a suspected broken arm.

It will take something special to top the tournament’s opening try as the Kiwis struck first in sensational style.

With absolutely no room to move in the left hand corner, Casey McLean managed a miracle, finding the grass with his entire body forced over the touchline

The Kangaroos replied with a runaway, Jack Bostock snatching a Jahrome Hughes pass out of the air and streaking away to score.

With the Kiwis forcing a line drop out, Reece Walsh sent it out on the full, Jaymayne Isaako slotting an easy two points.

After the Kiwis forced the defending champs again, Australia nabbed another intercept, this time to take the lead as Tom Trbojevic latched onto a McLean ball and fended off a scrambling Kodi Nikorima to go 90.

As the siren approached, the Kiwis bagged another two points as Nikorima was taken off the ball by Katoni Staggs, the centre sent to the bin as a result as Isaako squared the scores 10-apiece at half-time.

On his first international outing, fullback Ponga put the Kiwis back in front courtesy of a deft offload from Isaiah Papali’i.

After an extended period under the pump, it looked as if Ronaldo Mulitalo had stretched the Kiwis advantage after Trbojevic spilled a kick, but the chasers were ruled to be offside.

The Kangaroos relief turned to rapture as Bostock got his second, leaping above the pack to take a towering Cameron Munster bomb and reinstate the stalemate.

It wouldn’t last long though after Ponga chimed into the line and sliced right through, standing up Walsh to reclaim the lead for the Kiwis.

But Walsh would respond with a stunner of his own, exploding onto a Bostock offload 80 out, showcasing his blistering speed as he beat both Ponga and Hughes who collided with each other, the Australian full back far too fast for the desperate chase of Joseph Tapine.

That chase proved crucial however, as Latrell Mitchell sprayed the conversion to keep the Kiwis in front by two.

Cue more Kangaroos magic, Munster sending it to the skies, Bostock and Isaako with a clean aerial contest, won by Bostock to complete his hat-trick and put the home side up 24-22 with four minutes remaining.

A final Kiwis assault proved futile as the Kangaroos held on to break New Zealand hearts, but ignite a tournament.

See how the game unfolded in our blog:

rnz

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Election 2026: Luxon faces Hipkins in first leaders’ debate

Published

1 month ago

October 7, 2026

News Staff

Analysis – Three years ago, Christopher Luxon headed into his first head-to-head debate with Chris Hipkins on the back of a poll that had National on 37 points and able to form a government with ACT alone.

Labour under then-Prime Minister Chris Hipkins was on a downward spiral on 27 percent in that same 1News-Verian poll and had no path to power.

Fast-forward three years and both parties headed into Tuesday night’s debate with two fresh new polls.

RNZ-Reid Research’s results had National on 26 percent and Labour on 31, while 1News-Verian had a much tighter race with just one point in it and both parties just under 30.

Those results spell early retirement and unemployment for a decent number of National Party MPs currently enjoying the government benches.

MMP has evolved so much in the past two elections that the combined Labour-National vote has gone from 81 percent at the 2017 election to just 57 in Tuesday’s RNZ-Reid Research poll.

So-called minor parties have grown in both size and influence, capturing the imagination of voters that traditionally voted blue or red.

Increasingly polling is suggesting another new party – Opportunity – has a good chance of making it into Parliament and being a potential kingmaker.

There’s now a very real possibility that the next government could be made up of four political parties.

That has happened before under Sir John Key’s National government in 2008, but because he chose to welcome the Māori Party into the fold, not because he had to.

The minor parties of 2026 have leverage and power going into any coalition talks well beyond any previous election years.

It makes a head-to-head between Christopher Luxon and Chris Hipkins far more redundant in this political age.

Christopher Luxon and Chris Hipkins at the TVNZ debate, hosted by Jake Tame, Oct 6 2026 — The two Chrises greet each other.

TVNZ/Harley Peters

They can’t fully commit to any of the promises they make because the slate is almost entirely wiped clean after 7 November when political parties sit down to discuss what a future government might look like.

Luxon has ruled out working with Opportunity after the election because of its land tax policy and National campaigning on no new taxes.

On Tuesday night he repeatedly refused to answer whether he would pick the phone up if he needed the party to be prime minister.

Instead, he repeated his previous comments about an untenable land tax, and then told reporters after the debate the question was a “hypothetical” that didn’t need an answer.

To be clear, that’s not a no.

At times in the debate the leaders could have been put in a time machine and transported back to three years ago, so similar were some of the issues and answers to them.

The cost of living crisis continued to be the overwhelming theme, a healthcare system under pressure and patients waiting too long in emergency departments hadn’t improved, and neither Chris had fully grasped the meaning of a yes or no question.

There was no big revelation or pledge – on the latter neither party has the headroom in their fiscal plans to do so.

It’s unlikely undecided voters watching were swayed one way or the other by the end of it.

That’s not to say the two Chrises performed badly.

They were both across their briefs, and while they had some nervous energy at the outset both settled into a comfortable rhythm and got their key messages across.

While Hipkins managed to land a few blows on Luxon over his failure to discipline New Zealand First’s Winston Peters and Shane Jones over racist remarks, Luxon in return made a strong argument on education and had Hipkins concede he had done what Labour couldn’t and got India across the line on a free trade agreement.

The biggest controversy of the night was the pair being asked to pick between the All Blacks and the Warriors with Luxon going Team ABs while Hipkins chose to “Up the Wahs”.

Both would have gone to bed happy with their performance and grateful they didn’t say or do anything they deeply regretted.

There is a week until they face-off again – another week of smiling at the cameras and hoping voters return them to the major party league.

rnz

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Sydney Roosters win NRL Grand Final with one point victory over Newcastle Knights

Published

1 month ago

October 5, 2026

News Staff

A Daly Cherry-Evans field goal proves the difference as the Sydney Roosters beat the Newcastle Knights 19-18 in the NRL grand final.

The Roosters dictated for most of the night, but Newcastle led 12-0 on the back of two first-half tries against the run of play, including a spectacular 95-metre effort by Kalyn Ponga.

Mark Nawaqanitawase, whose bat-back led directly to Ponga’s try, got the Roosters on the board just before half-time and Billy Smith muscled his way over shortly after the break.

Desperate scrambling defence kept the Knights level until Nawaqanitawase scored his second after a lucky ricochet off the upright, and Cherry-Evans slotted a one-pointer with 10 minutes left.

Knights winger Greg Marzhew scored in the 77th minute to set up a grandstand finish, but they could not get into range to try to level the game.

Earlier, the Roosters won their third NRLW premiership, scoring seven tries to thrash the Brisbane Broncos 30-6 in a blowout and exact revenge in a rematch of the 2025 decider.

– ABC News