Not enough nurses, too much red tape

The nurses who looked after my dad were incredible.

This was never about them.

It was about the fact that there simply weren’t enough of them — and the system knew that.

I didn’t understand at first how dangerously understaffed private hospitals can be. I assumed, like many people do, that “private” meant better. More resources. More care. More attention.

Overworked nurses can’t give safe care — no matter how hard they try.

But here’s the reality:

In Queensland, public hospitals are required by law to maintain a minimum nurse-to-patient ratio.

Private hospitals? They’re not. There is no legislated ratio. They’re governed under federal laws, and staffing is left largely to internal budgets, not safety standards (although the private hospitals will disagree :).

So even though the nurses were doing their absolute best, they were stretched far too thin. A nurse for an entire wing. A nurse juggling medications, patient monitoring, paperwork, family questions, and emergencies.

And when something goes wrong in that environment, it’s not just a mistake – it's not the nurses fault – it’s a system failure.

I watched it unfold firsthand.

And yet, legally, the hospital “met the benchmark standard of care.” That’s the loophole. That’s how this continues. The standard is so low that even when something devastating happens, it doesn’t technically break the rules.

But to any normal person, it’s clearly not good enough.

This isn't a problem we can solve with more training modules or another review committee. You can’t patch over deep structural wounds with another policy doc.

You need more staff.

More time.

More humanity.

And unless we shine a light on the real issue — that private hospitals are prioritising profits over safe staffing — nothing will change.

It’s not just inefficient.

It’s dangerous.

And if we don’t start designing systems that centre care over compliance, we’ll keep losing people — and blaming individuals inside a system that sets them up to fail.

B x

Just a note: Everything I’ve shared here is based on my personal experience and views. I’m not naming names or pointing fingers — just being honest about what I saw and felt. It’s not about blame. It’s about trying to do better. This is shared in the hope of encouraging conversation, not conflict.