It was not uncommon for a nurse to come from generations of nurses. In many whānau there was a nurse, Kaiāwhina, community nurse, Karitane nurse, hospital aide, or healthcare assistant somewhere in the family tree. Caring for others was not simply a profession; it was a legacy passed from one generation to the next.

I am proud to say that this legacy continues within my own whānau. Today I have nieces and a mokopuna who are pursuing careers in nursing and healthcare. They carry forward not only the skills of the profession but also the values of compassion, service, and commitment that have defined nursing for generations.

When I trained as a nurse, life was very different. Regardless of what time we finished our shift, it was common to find nurses gathered in the nurses' home sharing a cup of Milo, Super wine biscuits, or peanut butter on toast. We would talk about our day, reflect on difficult situations, laugh together, and support one another. At the time, it simply felt like friendship and camaraderie.

Only later in my career did I realise how important those moments were. They were our debriefing sessions before formal debriefing became common practice. They helped us process grief, celebrate successes, and learn from one another. They strengthened our resilience and reinforced that nursing was a collective endeavour, not an individual burden. Those were fond times where I learned a lot, shared a lot, and grew a lot.

Today, the environment nurses work in looks very different. Workloads are heavier, staffing pressures are greater, and the pace of healthcare is relentless. Many student nurses and newly graduated nurses are entering a system facing unprecedented challenges. To all tauira nurses, I want to acknowledge your courage. You are entering a profession that is demanding, complex, and constantly changing. You face financial pressures, academic expectations, workforce shortages, increasing patient acuity, and uncertainty about the future of healthcare itself.

The recent Budget announcement was not a win for nursing, nor was it a win for the people of Aotearoa New Zealand. It failed to address the issues that healthcare workers, patients, and communities already know exist. We are not facing a future crisis; we are living through one now. The health system requires immediate action, not promises that solutions may emerge several years from now.

While commitments to new facilities, hospital redevelopments, and additional beds are important, buildings alone do not provide healthcare. Every hospital bed requires a workforce around it. It requires nurses, doctors, healthcare assistants, allied health professionals, midwives, administrators, cleaners, and support staff to ensure safe and effective care. A bed without a workforce is simply furniture.

Governments must begin by recognising the reality of the crisis across the entire health continuum—from primary care and community services through to secondary and tertiary services. Workforce shortages are being felt everywhere. Nurses know this because we live it every day. We see it in emergency departments, aged care facilities, community clinics, mental health services, general practices, and hospital wards.

Alongside these challenges, many nurses are increasingly concerned about the direction of health policy and workforce reform. The active implementation of austerity measures, coupled with a failure to adequately recognise workforce shortages and resource constraints, continues to place enormous pressure on frontline staff. We are repeatedly being asked to do more with less while demand for healthcare services continues to grow.

At the same time, policy proposals aimed at "modernising the health regulatory workforce" are creating pathways for new professional groups, such as physician associates, to become established within the healthcare system. While innovation and new models of care have their place, nurses are asking legitimate questions about how these changes will impact patient safety, workforce planning, professional accountability, and the value placed on nursing expertise.

Equally concerning is the gradual shift in regulatory oversight. Historically, health professions have been regulated through peer review and professional self-governance. Those with the knowledge, experience, and understanding of a profession were responsible for setting standards, determining competence, and ensuring accountability. Proposed changes that provide greater opportunities for ministerial intervention in regulatory decisions represent a significant departure from this principle.

Each change, viewed in isolation, may appear modest. Yet together they represent a broader trend towards centralisation and deregulation. Incremental steps can quietly reshape professions over time. The concern for nurses is not simply about protecting professional status. It is about protecting professional judgement, clinical standards, patient safety, and ensuring that the voices of those delivering care remain central to decisions about healthcare.

The challenge is compounded by an ageing population and increasing healthcare complexity. As our communities live longer, demand for healthcare services continues to grow. In three years’, time, the health needs of New Zealanders will almost certainly exceed the assumptions underpinning today's plans. Delayed action only increases the scale of the challenge. If we are serious about improving health outcomes, reducing inequities, and creating a sustainable health system, then investment in people—not just infrastructure—must be treated as an urgent priority.

At the same time, nursing is experiencing significant technological change. Digital health systems, artificial intelligence, virtual care, and data-driven decision-making are becoming increasingly embedded within healthcare delivery. These developments offer opportunities to improve access, efficiency, and outcomes. However, they also challenge us to consider what must remain unchanged. Nursing cannot lose its humanity.