The current hot topics of health and social media collided this week following a Facebook post by Bega MP Andrew Constance.
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A post made on the social media platform on Monday afternoon by the Bega MP and Transport and Infrastructure Minister accused union members of "masquerading as nurses" at pre-polling booths.
"It's been extremely disappointing to see paid union activists from outside our region masquerading as nurses and spreading Labor propaganda at polling booths throughout the Eurobodalla and Bega Valley," Mr Constance's post read.
According to Facebook, the post was edited seven hours later with the allegation union workers were "masquerading" as nurses removed, and replaced with a fresh allegation they were "pretending to be locals".
The post was edited a further two times over the next 24 hours.
Mr Constance initially said the post was changed "within an hour, not days later" before saying it had been changed "two to three hours later" because he had wanted to place a greater emphasis on local nurses.
"I don't have a problem if it's local nurses," he said.
"But I saw one of them driving down from Sydney to Batemans Bay."
He said the Coalition had gone "above and beyond" with helping local nurses who are campaigning for guaranteed nurse-patient ratios in all hospitals, not just surgical and medical wards in large metropolitan hospitals, which is currently the case.
Labor leader Michael Daley has promised to apply minimum ratios in emergency, maternity, medical and surgical and paediatric wards if elected, putting the state on par with Victoria and Queensland.
Mr Constance said the ratio system would take away the current "flexibility" of hospitals being able to move staff around wards to where they are needed most on any given shift.
The Bega MP's Facebook post was viewed many times by local nurses, including Tarraganda's Carmen Mataic, before the edit was made.
She said association members were upset by the post.
Ms Mataic, a casual nurse at the South East Regional Hospital and NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association member, has been handing out Country Labor how to vote cards in Bega, and said every union representative she has seen has been a nurse.
"I have known every nurse who has been here," she said.
Described by Mr Constance as "the bloke in the beard", paid association member and registered nurse Mark Murphy, who works out of the union's Waterloo office, said he has "never made any secret" of where he is from or his motives for campaigning at the Bega pre-polling booth.
He also denied the allegation union workers were posing as local nurses.
"I think that if someone as influential as the MP is going to make a post then it has to be factual," he said.
"I am a registered nurse and I am a paid employee of the association, but we feel passionate about our campaign and we want the community to be aware of our campaign.
"Unfortunately health has become politicised.
"We've had an ongoing campaign for eight years, and now we have a major party supporting our campaign.
"I'm not ashamed to be down here."
Mr Murphy said the minimum ratio system is "underpinned by evidence based research" which shows it "delivers better patient outcomes".
"The current Liberal Party commitment of extra staff means it's up to the local health district to decide where resources go," he said.
"A lot has changed since the current agreement nine years ago which doesn't work. We need shift by shift mandated patient ratios for our patients to have the safest care."
Health Minister Brad Hazzard said in February "small hospitals across regional NSW would feel the brunt of ward closures" if minimum ratios were mandated
"The 'nurse hours per patient days ratios' used by NSW Health under Labor in 2010, with the agreement of the NSW Nurses and Midwives Association, continues to provide excellent patient care and maximum flexibility for hospitals to keep wards open," Mr Hazzard said.
"Labor's new policy is un-costed, un-tested and under-cooked, and will risk the closure of hospital wards across the state."
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Country Labor candidate for Bega Leanne Atkinson said on social media she was "disappointed" by Mr Constance's use of the term "paid union activists".
"Have a look at the responses on his disgraceful Facebook post and note the number of nurses and nurse organisers who are exercising their right to political engagement," she said.
"No one is masquerading: they are all trained nurses."