We need to employ our new medical graduates
We must consider the big picture when we train our nurses and doctors.
Figures released by Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora state that 399 recently graduated nursing students did not get jobs in the “matching process” system (ODT 26.7.25).
The government is funding the training of more doctors and has approved the building of a new medical school. I am concerned that if jobs for recently graduated medical students are not funded, we will be no better off.
A recently graduated health professional is at the start of their learning. They need supervision, mentoring, and time to consolidate their learning.
There must be adequate resources to employ these graduates, ensuring that they have supervision and a place to work.
Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora must be funded to ensure that there are enough places for recent health practitioner graduates to work and continue their learning.
Dr Ruth Barnett
Dunedin
Values and know-alls
We do have a habit of believing that there is something sacrosanct about our values.
As examples, Dunedin city councillor Steve Walker thinks that his political party’s backing lets voters know what his values are (Letters ODT 18.7.25), and United Machinists CEO Sarah Ramsay thinks that we should stop picking partisan sides and start picking values (Opinion ODT 23.7.25).
They can’t both be using the word values in the same way.
Surely, in public life and life in general we would do better to stop grandstanding authoritatively on what we think our values and principles are, and, starting with data that might be considered relevant to the issues we face, be willing instead, as Sarah suggests, to learn to solve our problems together by building on each other’s ideas.
Pity the possibility that a mayoral hopeful could bring a whole party of know-alls into local politics.
Ron Adams
Dunedin
Water quality
Re the article (ODT 24.7.25) about Greenpeace defacing the brown trout monument in Gore, I wish to put a couple of points of view across.
While I do not go along with Greenpeace’s modus operandi, I do wish to take issue with Mr Herrick of Fed Farmers in regard to their response whenever water quality is an issue.
I have fished Southland rivers for well over 50 years and they have never been as bad as they currently are: for me there is only one common denominator.
Federated Farmers push the story that urban growth has a part to play. My answer to that is name me two towns in Southland which have actually increased in population in the last 20-odd years?
It is my belief that, at best, maybe only one has.
I am not in favour of Greenpeace as such, but I do agree with their comment about how the water quality has deteriorated over time.
Keith Hotton
Invercargill
Core services
Central government has called for councils to provide core services, and leave any frills up to the private sector.
In Cromwell our council is creating a cafe and an art space in its new complex down on Melmore Tce.
There are already three cafes to compete with, just down the street at Old Cromwell.
Down the street there are three art galleries, whose premises were already funded by the community.
It is too late to change now, of course - but we must consider the example set by our council, carefully.
Dave George
Cromwell
Please, can somebody speak for the trees?
Dunedin City Council has told me there will be no more planting of trees in the raised planter sites on the edges of the Octagon. There is already a tree missing in the central carriageway. A treeless town centre is not a good prospect.
D. Boyes
Dunedin
[Heath Ellis, DCC parks and recreation group manager, replies: ‘‘Your correspondent is correct - a treeless town centre would not be a good prospect - but fortunately we continue to see value in investing in our city’s wonderful greenspaces. In the Octagon, our focus is currently on maintaining what we have, including the existing mix of trees and planting boxes. Our planting programme also remains active in other parts of the city, including our CBD, where the number of trees in the George St shopping precinct has almost tripled with the addition of about 90 new street trees as part of the area’s recent upgrade. We’ve also significantly expanded the area’s greenspace by planting 730 sq m of new garden beds along George St and adjacent side streets. Together, these improvements significantly enhance the CBD’s appearance and also its biodiversity values, helping restore wildlife corridors and habitats for birds and insects. We’re also continuing our planting programme in urban areas and reserves in other parts of the city, for example the recent upgrade (including landscaping and planting) at Te Rauone Reserve.
Increasing turnout
Definitely return to polling booths over postal voting. Even consider a single Saturday for voting much like the national election. Make it an event. Motivation for turnout might also come from renters being advised, perhaps annually, the annual rates amount they pay via their rent. That cost is otherwise hidden from them.
Bernard Jennings
Wellington
Sheeran genie out of bottle
Before we stick the boot into Ed Sheeran for his unwillingness to perform at the Forsyth-Barr Stadium, thus cruelly denying his considerable fan-base in the South, it might do well to pause and consider that, based upon his experience of having performed there before, he, his sound engineers and supporting staff might have their very good reasons for leaving that venue out of his present itinerary.
Despite much misinformation during this building’s initial launch, the ‘‘world class acoustics’’ promised, hand-on-heart, have never materialised, and in a venue of this shape and dimensions, never will, no matter how much ratepayers’ money is thrown at the problem.
The acoustics of concerts in this venue are subject to the ‘‘genie out-of-the-bottle’’ syndrome. Once they are projected at loud volumes into a space of such design and dimensions that powerful reverberations bounce around in an uncontrollable manner, nothing may induce the rogue content of them to return to the bottle.
While they go on-the-rampage then, the sound levels being projected into this space, covering a wide range of different frequencies and exacerbated by the chamber’s dimensions, set up complex phase interferences which make it possible to clearly hear vocals and amplified guitars in some spots, but only incoherent garbage, in others.
As I understand it, Ed Sheeran, and his team are well aware of this anomaly in some of the venues which they vet for their performance potential. He has the option, then, of performing in venues which are much more sympathetic.
In spite of much hand-wringing and loud lamentations, the rekindling of false hopes, expectations and other BS on the part of our council and the vested interests of those who seek to benefit from the profits flowing from large numbers packed into this space, the laws of physics will prevail.
Ian Smith
Waverley
[Abridged - length. Editor.]
Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: editor@odt.co.nz
