PremiumEditorialEditorialNZ Herald15 Aug, 2026 06:00 PM4 mins to readStories about hospitals suggest there is a critical shortage of emergency department nurses, doctors and beds. And patients are the ones who suffer. Photo / 123rfIt’s an emergency The stories, like the patients on gurneys in hospital emergency departments, keep coming. The remedy, conspicuous by its absence.

In January this year, it was reported that Wellington Hospital’s Emergency Department recorded a code red and went into its most critical status – when