Over 70 nurses could be seen in the iconic dark blue scrubs chanting "Make ratios law, or we're walking out the door" from 9:30 in the morning before gathering outside the hospital to make their complaints heard.

The strike was called off by the Industrial Relations Commission at the last minute, in a string of setbacks and attempts to dissuade the nurses from taking action against the constant overtime demanded by the lack of nurses in hospitals.

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The key change that nurses and midwives in NSW are asking for is for legalised ratios of nurses to patients. The ideal is to have one nurse for every three patients in emergency departments, and one to four in other wards.

Griffith branch secretary Kristy Wilson, who organised Griffith's action, said that the conditions were not just setting nurses back, but affecting patient safety.

"The current state of the hospital is the worst I have ever seen, same with morale. Our cries have fallen on the deaf ears of this government," she said.

"We think patient safety is well and truly compromised, we just can't stay silent any longer about what is happening inside our hospitals."

Ms Wilson added that the call to avoid taking action was disappointing, especially due to the last-minute nature.

"That was put out on every media channel, I was fielding messages late last night asking about it and whether we were going ahead. We have actively been discouraged from striking which is very disappointing. We've been told we can't wear our uniforms, which is just untrue."

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Brendan Catanzariti, a long-term campaigner, said that the pandemic had simply highlighted the faults in the system that were already there.

"It is a very, very, very old problem ... Pandemic has exposed a gaping hole in our already-struggling health system. The novel coronavirus has been with us for a short time, but the novel nursing ratio virus has been with us much much longer."

Young nurse Stephanie Bell was pushed to tears speaking in front of the group, explaining that she didn't know how she could encourage young nurses to get into a profession that had proven so difficult and taxing.

"The nurse to patient rate was the same in 2021 as it was in 2011. In 2011, COVID wasn't even a twinkle in a bat's eye," she said.

Raj Janday, a nurse in paediatrics, explained that since October last year, the ward had been flat out.

"From October last year, our ward has been so shortstaffed that this is the first fortnight that I haven't worked over time ... We are really, really struggling."

Ms Wilson said that this would likely be the first in a long battle to get more staff on the floor, but that they would keep demanding and making their voices heard.

"The healthcare system has been long dysfunctional and is now beyond breaking point. Nurses are exhausted, burnt out and feeling totally unsupported by a government that repeatedly treats our profession with utter disdain."

"We're in this for the long haul, and I would ask you to stand beside us in what is likely to be an epic battle."

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