IN THE HEIGHT of the COVID-19 crisis, nurses like Maitland Hospital's Jessica Coleman worked overtime without complaint to care for the sick and elderly.
But when she and fellow staff were cut off by floodwaters at Gillieston Heights, they were told they wouldn't be granted disaster leave until they've exhausted their own Family and Community Services Leave (FACS) for time some were forced to take off.
"I went to most of my shifts, I spent three nights away from my kids to do that as it took the majority of the day to get there between getting on the boat, the taxi just never came so I had to get a friend to pick me up and take me back to feed before dropping me to the hospital," she said.
"I did that twice in the time we were cut off, it was really tough but without the support of disaster pay I couldn't afford to use my FACS leave in case the kids get sick.
"I need that leave but I also needed an income to come in so I had to go to work, it made things really tough at home."
The state and federal governments both recognised Gillieston Heights as a disaster zone, with residents unable to get to and from Maitland for more than eight days in the height of the floods.
And it's not just Maitland Hospital, nurses at Newcastle's John Hunter Hospital were reportedly told they would also need to dip into their FACS leave.
John Hunter Hospital executive general manager Leanne Johnson said her thoughts went out to the communities impacted by the recent flooding.
"Where an emergency is declared, for example a declared natural disaster, employees directly affected by the emergency can take FACS leave, and may be granted up to five days' special leave on top of that," she said.
"FACS leave is made available to employees in addition to annual leave and sick leave to address unplanned personal issues relating to family commitments.
"This policy covers all NSW Health employees. We continue to support staff affected by recent flooding in the Hunter region and encourage them to reach out to us directly if they need additional support."
Ms Coleman said she doesn't think the administration fully understands what being cut off by the floods meant.
"It wasn't just about getting to work, I had family at home, no way of travel on the other side, no way to access meals," she said.
"I had to go ask the hospital kitchen for food - then there's the impact on our families, especially my toddler who didn't understand why I wasn't coming home."
NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association assistant general secretary Shaye Candish said members have reported feeling pressured to go to work due to the staffing shortages, regardless of their personal circumstances.
"After raising concerns on behalf of our members, Hunter New England Local Health District has since confirmed nurses impacted by flooding can access FACS leave as per the Award, and if that is exhausted disaster leave payments of up to five days can be granted on an individual basis," she said.
"We're continuing to follow up with members to ensure they are aware of their entitlements."
Maitland's state MP Jenny Aitchison and federal member Meryl Swanson have both said they are on the case.
Ms Aitchison said she was escalating the matter to the minister for health.
"My understanding is they have an entitlement to disaster leave and are having difficulty accessing that," she said.
"I'll be doing more investigations but we have an urgent representation to the minister today [Thursday] to ask about that, I'll be contacting him personally."
Ms Swanson said a nurse had contacted her office and confirmed that union members would represent them, as is appropriate at this point.
"I would suggest that administration has made an error of judgement and we assume it will be resolved quickly," she said. "I have asked the nurses to keep me informed.
"I am respectful that this is a state hospital and have great faith in the unions representing these hard-working nurses who through no fault of their own cannot get to work."
