A nursing union says Auckland's hospitals need more security and healthcare staff, to deal with its ongoing Delta outbreak

Four hospital staff and several security staff at Middlemore Hospital are isolating, after the close contact of a Covid case visited the hospital when they should have been isolating.

About 20 staff also had to isolate after a man snuck into North Shore Hospital before testing positive.

Nurses Organisation spokeswoman Kerri Nuku says having to continually monitor visitors is exhausting staff, and they need more hands on deck.

She says she spoke to a nurse who says sometimes incompetent things happen because staff are completely burnt out.