Ncah issue 15 2013

Issue 15 29/07/13 fortnightly

Regional & Remote Health Feature Taking the leap into remote nursing Queensland nurses vow to fight job attacks Pharmacies employ nurses to fill health care gaps A third of New Zealand graduate nurses unable to find jobs

www.ncah.com.au

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Nursing Careers Allied Health - Issue 15 | Page 3

www.ncah.com.au )SSUE p *ULY We hope you enjoy perusing the range of opportunities included in Issue 15, 2013.

If you are interested in pursuing any of these opportunities, please contact the advertiser directly via the contact details provided. If you have any queries about our publication or if you would like to receive our publication, please email us at careers@ncah.com.au m&!#4 ./4 &)#4)/.n The NCAH Magazine distribution is independently audited by the Circulations Audit Board.

Total Audited Print and Digital Distribution: 28,090 The NCAH Magazine is the most widely distributed national nursing and allied health publication in Australia For all advertising and production enquiries please contact us on +61 (0) 3 9271 8700, email careers@ncah.com.au or visit www.ncah.com.au If you would like to change your mailing address, or be included on our distribution, please email careers@ncah.com.au

Published by Seabreeze Communications Pty Ltd Trading as NCAH. ABN 29 071 328 053. Š 2013 Seabreeze Communications Pty Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied or reproduced by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher. Compliance with the Trade Practices Act 1974 of advertisements contained in this publication is the responsibility of those who submit the advertisement for publication.

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A third of New Zealand graduate nurses unable to find jobs

by Karen Keast It’s not just Australian graduate nurses struggling to find jobs – it’s been revealed 30 per cent of New Zealand’s nursing graduates are also unable to secure employment.

New Zealand Minister of Health Tony Ryall recently told the health select committee job turnover and vacancy rates were at low levels as nurses decided to stay in their roles due to the economic climate.

Ms Graham-Smith said despite nursing graduates being unable to secure jobs, it was not a case of too many nurses being trained.

“We are going to need this workforce as many of the current nursing workforce start to retire,” she said.

“What we need to do is enable our new graduates to stay in NZ by ensuring that there

The committee was told of the 1232 graduates last year, 57 per cent had a job in December, which increased to 74 per cent in February, while 10 per cent no longer wanted to work in nursing, leaving 15 per cent still seeking employment.

are jobs available to them.”

New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) associate professional services manager Hilary Graham-Smith said 30 per cent of nurse graduates are missing out on jobs.

the workforce to retire.

“Yes they are but NZNO is working with the office of the Chief Nurse to find a solution to this issue,” she said.

“The sector acknowledges that the situation is unacceptable and is focused on making the nurse entry to practice program work effectively for both our new graduates and the employers.”

Ms Graham-Smith said targeted funding was needed for entry to practice programs.

“Currently places on these programs in the district health board sector are based either on a vacancy model or the DHB ring fences the funding.

“What we need is the latter approach but with more funding available so that more places can be offered to new graduate nurses.”

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The committee was told 41 per cent of New Zealand nurses are aged over 50 and more nurses will need to be trained from 2015 to prepare for the large number of nurses leaving

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Boost to allied health education

by Karen Keast open in September, and will focus on chronic disease management and sports health.

Alongside teaching, learning and research, the centre has five individual clinical facilities, known as the Griffith Health Clinics, which will focus on physiotherapy/rehabilitation, psychology, dentistry, exercise physiology and dietetics.

Five allied health clinics will take centre stage at Griffith University’s new $150 million Griffith Health Centre.

The centre is the latest state-of-the-art boost to allied health education in the state.

The Griffith Health Centre will operate alongside the new Gold Coast University Hospital, due to Page 12 | www.ncah.com.au

The clinics are expected to expand next year to include speech pathology, medicine, nursing and midwifery, clinical pharmacy, social work and occupational therapy.

The centre will be home to the state’s only plastination lab, designed for the preservation and exhibition of body part samples for training medical and nursing students.

For the full article visit NCAH.com.au

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New Qld super clinic a plus for allied health

by Karen Keast However the facility will continue to develop links with associated service providers with a view to broadening its service offer in future.

It is anticipated that these expanded services will include X-ray and ultrasound, audiology, physiotherapy and diabetes education/ services.

The opening of a new ‘super clinic’ in Gladstone, Queensland, looks set to provide a suite of opportunities for allied health professionals.

The Gladstone GP Super Clinic will officially open its doors to begin servicing patients on Monday 22 July. However in the week leading up to the official opening, directors Dr John Bird and Dr Evan Jones and practice manager Jodie Myers opened the $11 million facility to members of the health community for a special professional preview.

Federal Health Minister Tanya Plibersek was present at the opening of the Phillip St clinic, which will offer podiatry, audiology, physiotherapy, and radiotherapy and pathology services, and reportedly commented she was impressed with the new facility.

Meanwhile Super Clinic director Dr John Bird indicated the opening was a boon for the Gladstone region allied health sector.

“It will become Gladstone’s allied health hub,” he said.

The Gladstone Super Clinic is designed to deliver high quality, holistic care that offers a comprehensive range of health services under one roof. It is understood the Super Clinic currently provides the services of a dietician and psychologist. Pathology services are also available on site.

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The super clinic will also offer education and training of doctors, nurses, and allied health students and is working on an education program with partners including: Queensland University of Technology, University of Qld School of Medicine, CSQTC (the Central and Southern Qld Training Consortium), QRME (Queensland Rural Medical Education) and the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine, including involvement with the John Flynn placement program.

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The first full day of the conference kicks into life with three fantastic keynote speakers who hardly need introduction: Dr Phillip Nitschke, Director of EXIT International; Dr Yvonne Luxford, CEO of Palliative Care Australia; and Dr Peter Saul, former Head of Discipline for Medical Ethics at Newcastle University. This stimulating start will set us up for the rest of the conference, with papers on topics ranging from music participation and mental health to the role of the media in the portrayal of domestic and family violence in the Northern Territory.

You have the chance to network at the tradeshow, catch up with remote health colleagues working throughout Australia, and recognise excellence at the awards presentations during the opening ceremony and the closing dinner.

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For more details go to: www.crana.org.au Nursing Careers Allied Health - Issue 15 | Page 17

Taking the leap into remote nursing

by Karen Keast What do you need to be able to thrive in remote nursing? The key lies in equipping yourself with an open mind and a sense of adventure.

Natalie Birt wakes up to sunshine every day in outback Australia.

The 41-year-old registered nurse loves the whistling kites swooping in the skies, the red sunsets and the even redder dirt.

Most of all, she loves the smiles on the faces of the Indigenous children at the school in Wadeye, 394 kilometres south-west of Darwin, where she works as the school’s first and only nurse.

“Good morning nurse Nat,” the kids greet her every day, smiling.

Natalie began work at the school, which has up to 600 primary and secondary school students, at the start of this year.

Originally from Gippsland in Victoria, Natalie, a division two nurse for 17 years, worked in a variety of roles and locations before completing her division one qualification in 2008 and going on to work in emergency department nursing.

It wasn’t enough. Natalie wanted a new challenge – a move into nursing Indigenous people.

“They have different challenges and illnesses to what non-Indigenous people do,” she says.

“I also love the bush and the outback and fishing and camping. I thought I could do all of that as well as nurse.”

A friend of Natalie’s, who had ventured into remote nursing at Timber Creek in the Northern Territory, encouraged Natalie to give it a go, so Natalie searched online for nursing agencies and came across Medacs Healthcare (Australia) operations manager Donna Gould.

Donna found Natalie her first position – an eight week contract in the emergency department at the Alice Springs Hospital in January 2010, where she was able to find her feet and become familiar with the different surroundings, people and culture.

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Natalie’s next position was a three-month posting at Minyerri, a dry community of about 700 people located 270 kilometres south-east of Katherine.

It was the wet season and to get there Natalie experienced her first ride in a “Troopy” 4WD. “They are like a big 4WD and they have got the side seats, you can sit five people on each side; they are their ambulances,” she says.

“They picked me up from Katherine and drove three and a half hours in flood water to get to the community.

“I thought – what am I in for? The roads were washed away and I knew I was stuck in this community. I could access a landline but there was no mobile phone reception.

“Donna said it was a sink or swim situation and thankfully I swam. The people out there are very friendly and they welcomed me with open arms.

“I learnt so much about their culture. We had a man come in one day and he had stabbed himself in the arm.

“That’s what they do when someone dies; they self-harm. I had to adjust myself to that.”

Natalie thrived in her remote experience and when her post was completed, she went home to Victoria, packed up her house and made the move to Darwin.

Once there, she did agency nursing for eight weeks and then got her first job in research at the Menzies School of Health Research.

The job was an 18 month contract that saw Natalie embark on weekly small charter plane flights to Tiwi Island, Wadeye and Kununurra researching two pneumococcal vaccines, aimed at reducing the incidence of otitis media in Indigenous children.

“I gained many skills from this job and worked very closely with midwives in the remote clinics and new Indigenous mothers,” she says.

“It was a huge challenge…and on finishing my contract I felt very passionate about nursing the Indigenous people in the NT.” Natalie wasn’t ready to return home, so when she saw a position advertised for a school nurse at Wadeye, the sixth most populated town in the Territory and the largest Indigenous community, she applied for it.

It was also one of the communities Natalie had been flying in and out of, and she was familiar with its challenges and issues.

Natalie obtained the position and has since set up her own small clinic at the school, where she looks after the health of the children and also its Indigenous staff members.

She works with visiting health professionals and liaises with the town clinic for serious injuries, runs health promotion, has begun writing policies and procedures, and provides much-needed health care for the Indigenous students.

“I have had 150 kids through the clinic so far,” she says.

“They have come in with scabies, school sores, cuts and bites and head injuries.”

Natalie says with Darwin a seven-hour drive away, there are the obvious challenges to

cope with, such as the heat, which she is now acclimatised to, and the isolation.

There’s also a few unusual challenges.

“You have also got to deal with snakes, green tree frogs, the dust that gets everywhere and the camp dogs that can be quite aggressive,” she says.

“We live in places with eight to nine foot high fences because of the dogs.

“It’s also a troubled community in the Northern Territory. There are 26 different tribes that live within the community and there’s lots of tribal fighting.”

There are also many positives, from the pay package which includes Natalie’s accommodation costs, and covers her water and electricity, while she also receives three return flights to Darwin each year.

Plus the hours are great. Natalie works Monday to Friday, from 8am to 4pm, and has the school holidays off.

She has also enjoyed exploring the outback, experiencing the local culture and making friends in the community.

Natalie made the move to the outback on her own, as her partner Howard was unable to leave his position.

Nursing Careers Allied Health - Issue 15 | Page 19

“We have nurses who just want a new adventure away from a large hospital environment, nurses who work best in small teams and those who do it for monetary reasons,” she says.

“We rarely struggle to find nurses who are interested in working in rural and remote locations.”

Donna says Medacs Healthcare requires nurses to have a broad range of nursing skills and experience before being sent to rural and remote locations, with nurses needing at least two years’ experience in an emergency setting before being posted at very remote locations.

She also advises nurses wanting to work remotely to “be prepared to roll with anything that may happen”.

“Every day will be different and you will experience things you have never experienced before,” she says.

“Go into rural and remote nursing with an open mind and a sense of adventure.

While Natalie says she couldn’t have made the move without the support of Howard and her two children, she says it is possible to venture to remote communities without moving your family.

“Some nurses might think their partner has to leave their job but they can actually go up alone and achieve their dream,” she says.

For nurses interested in taking the leap into remote nursing, Medacs Healthcare regularly has contract and permanent positions available.

Most contract positions range in length from four to 13 weeks, in locations as diverse as regional New South Wales and Queensland to the middle of the Western Australian desert, with opportunities to work for state health services and Aboriginal health services to onenurse clinics and rural hospitals with less than 20 beds.

Donna, who helped Natalie move into remote nursing, says many nurses are interested in Indigenous health and want to experience it first-hand.

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“The remote nurses I have dealt with over the years generally fall into two categories – those who try it and never want to do it again and those who fall in love with the remote locations, the people and the nature of the job.

“It is a job that takes a special person.”

Remote nursing has certainly been a lifechanging experience for Natalie.

She concedes it’s changed her both personally and professionally.

While Natalie plans to return home to Victoria next year to be closer to family, it will be a short-term stint. Remote nursing is now in her blood.

“People have said to me I have grown so much more confident in myself and my whole attitude has changed,” she says.

“I would say to others interested in remote nursing to go and talk to as many people as you can that have been there.

“It will change your life. It certainly changed mine.”

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NEW MATERIAL

Critical care nursing researcher focuses on patient recovery

by Karen Keast they are still in bed lying down, will that help their muscle function in the longer term?”

And instead of sedation, Professor Aitken said it was important for patients to remember their time in intensive care.

“By not being able to remember intensive care they actually have more psychological problems,” she said.

“A lot of our work is around changing our practice in intensive care or introducing new interventions.”

Imagine cycling machines that fit into the end of an intensive care patient’s bed to improve the patient’s muscle function and recovery?

Queensland researcher Professor Leanne Aitken is one of a team of researchers working to test innovative strategies in a bid to improve the long term recovery of patients after critical illness or major trauma.

The Griffith University Centre for Health Practice Innovation and Princess Alexandra Hospital researcher said research shows patients face physical, psychological, cognitive and economic challenges up to two years after they have left intensive care.

“We need to be looking at how we can change our care and how we can use things like rehabilitation programs a whole lot earlier than we currently do,” she said.

“We used to think it was good to let patients rest. Now even in intensive care we want to get them up and mobilising so their muscles don’t deteriorate.

“While a patient is still in intensive care and they are not well enough to get out of bed, we are just starting to test - if we get them cycling while Page 22 | www.ncah.com.au

Professor Aitken, who spent most of her 30 year clinical nursing career in intensive care nursing and has spent the last 20 years working in research, was recently recognised for her work on an international level, becoming a Fellow of the American Academy of Nurses while she was also appointed an Honorary Ambassador of the World Federation of Critical Care Nurses (WFCCN).

“I am delighted to be recognised for my work on an international level and to see that it is now influencing nursing care practice around the world,” she said.

Professor Aitken’s work also includes raising awareness of sepsis, one of the leading causes of death around the world.

“Prevention or early detection are the two most important things when it comes to sepsis,” she said.

“The first and best thing for nurses is really good infection prevention measures like hand washing and good wound care and decreasing contamination.

“The second thing is the early recognition, so picking up when a patient isn’t quite right, is deteriorating and getting early intervention… which is early antibiotics but the right antibiotics.”

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4HE PASSION THAT HEALTH PROFESSIONALS FEEL FOR THEIR WORK IS OFTEN UNFORTUNATELY MIRRORED BY A DEPLETION OF ENERGY AND LIFE FORCE LEFT FOR THE SELF 4HIS WAS NOTICED ALMOST IMMEDIATELY AT A RECENT RETREAT FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONALS THAT AIMED TO REDUCE BURNOUT IMPROVE VITALITY AND ENHANCE -INDFULNESS SKILLS IN DOCTORS NURSES

PSYCHOLOGISTS AND OTHER HEALTH PROFESSIONALS $R !LANDA 4HOMPSON AND $R 3AMANTHA #LARKE ARE #LINICAL 0SYCHOLOGISTS WHO RAN THE RETREAT ON A SMALL ISLAND OFF "ALI $R 4HOMPSON NOTED THAT SHE FELT kREALLY MOVED BY THE OBVIOUS VOCATION THAT HEALTH CARE WAS FOR THE PROFESSIONALS PRESENTl AND YET HER CONCERNS WERE THAT A CULTURE OF CARING DID NOT INCLUDE THE CARERS

THEMSELVES UNDER OUR CURRENT SYSTEM !S A RESULT IT WAS A SHAME TO SEE SO MANY PEOPLE WHO WERE SUFFERING AS A RESULT OF THEIR WORK (EALTH PROFESSIONALS ARE GENERALLY EXCELLENT AT TAKING CARE OF OTHER PEOPLE -UCH TIME

EFFORT AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IS RIGHTLY DIRECTED INTO THIS AVENUE !ND THIS WAS CERTAINLY DISCUSSED BY THE PROFESSIONALS AT THE RETREAT !ND YET FOR MOST NURSES DOCTORS

PSYCHOLOGISTS PHYSIOTHERAPISTS AND OTHER CARERS THE PRIMARY TOOL USED IN OUR WORK IS OURSELVES 4HIS IS WHY PERFORMING FROM A PLACE OF VITALITY AND HEALTH IS SO CRUCIAL !T THE SAME TIME IT CAN FEEL ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO ACHIEVE ACCEPTABLE 4AKING CARE OF THE SELF IS VITAL FOR OUR PATIENTS AND FOR OUR PERSONAL LIVES For the full article visit NCAH.com.au Nursing Careers Allied Health - Issue 15 | Page 23

Prostate cancer nurses program to double

by Karen Keast Australia’s only prostate cancer specialist nursing

local treatment and enable patients to make the

program will be expanded with up to 13 new

decisions that are right for them.”

specialist nurses to be employed over the next four years.

Health Minister Tanya Plibersek has announced

Mr Sandoe said details of the program’s expansion, including where the extra specialist

$7 million in funding to expand and extend the

nurses will be rolled out, was yet to be

program which has now placed 12 nurses in

established.

major metropolitan and regional hospitals across every state and territory in Australia.

The Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA) pilot program was launched in May last year thanks to $3.6 million in funding from the

Prostate cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death in men, with almost 20,000 Australian men diagnosed with the disease in 2009.

Movember Foundation.

The Australian Nursing Federation has applauded

PCFA national chairman and prostate cancer

the funding for the often “neglected area” of

survivor David Sandoe said the government’s

men’s health.

funding would enable the program to assist more prostate cancer survivors and their families.

“This is incredibly important,” he said.

“It’s a fantastic model that’s come to fruition. We have had some positive outcomes already.”

PCFA health and education programs director

“Statistics show that every year in Australia, more than 3000 men die of prostate cancer, which is in fact higher than the number of women who die from breast cancer,” ANF federal secretary Lee Thomas said.

Julie Sykes said prostate cancer specialist

Under the program, prostate cancer nurses are

nurses help patients navigate the cancer process

now working at Austin Health, Bendigo Hospital

while providing free expert advice and ongoing

and Latrobe Regional Hospital in Victoria, the

support.

Tamworth Hospital in New South Wales and

Ms Sykes said the nurses also play a significant

at the Royal Hobart Hospital and Launceston

role in helping patients manage the side effects

General Hospital in Tasmania.

of the treatment.

“The prostate cancer specialist nurses are a central point of contact for patients throughout their entire cancer journey,” she said.

“The nurses will make sure that patients are

The program also includes the Townsville Hospital and Mater Adults Hospital in Queensland, the Darwin Hospital in the Northern Territory, the Canberra Hospital in the ACT, the Royal Adelaide

aware of what services there are in their local

Hospital in South Australia and the Hollywood

areas to help them manage the side effects of

Private Hospital in Western Australia.

Page 24 | www.ncah.com.au

Nursing Careers Allied Health - Issue 15 | Page 25

Pharmacies employ nurses to fill health care gaps

by Karen Keast for professional development.

GPs also expressed concerns about inadequate public care and the lack of regulation of pharmacy-based care.

“Unlike the majority of nurses in Australia, their work is not overseen by their employer or any other professional organisation, nor are they bound by guidelines, protocols and procedures, or have clearly articulated referral pathways, an integral part of most other health care settings,” the authors stated.

Pharmacists are employing nurses to provide maternal and child health care in a market-driven response to gaps in the public sector, according to the results of a new study.

As part of a state-wide evaluation of post-birth care in Queensland, University of Queensland researchers found short postnatal hospital stays are placing increased demands on communitybased post-birth care services, with pharmacy nurses reporting high levels of demand for their services.

Researchers interviewed 19 pharmacy nurses and six general practitioners with case studies conducted in six regional and metropolitan areas for the study, recently published in BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth journal.

The study shows pharmacy nurses are providing free drop-in services ranging from maternal reassurance to support, infant weighing and monitoring in convenient locations.

It revealed while pharmacy nurses are highly qualified and experienced in maternal and child health, there was a lack of privacy for consultations, limited capacity for client record keeping and follow up, and limited opportunity Page 26 | www.ncah.com.au

“Importantly, because their practice tends to be isolated, they report little formal or informal connection with other primary health care services, exacerbating problems with lack of service coordination and integration in primary health care services more generally.”

The study found many pharmacy nurses previously worked in publicly-funded child and family health services before moving into pharmacies, with most employed on a casual basis, for reasons such as predictable hours compatible with family responsibilities.

It found consumer demand for the free services was evident in the large number of clients, and the nurses revealed they did not feel pressure to endorse or promote pharmacy products.

“A minority expressed their own perceived concerns about covering their wages; and in a few cases nurses felt their location near baby products rendered a subtle, though not explicit, endorsement of the products on sale.”

The study stated Queensland has the highest rate of hospital discharge before five days in Australia, with women spending an average of two days in hospital after a non-instrumental vaginal birth and four days in hospital after a lower segment caesarean section.

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Nursing Careers Allied Health - Issue 15 | Page 27

Strike highlights rural nurse-to-patient ratios

by Karen Keast “Nurses and midwives are taking action to demonstrate their commitment to the expansion of the nurse-to-patient ratio system and the improvement of the ratios themselves. A major issue is certainly the delivery of care in rural and regional areas. At the moment in cities the ratios are one to four, one to four and one to seven across the three working day shifts, while in rural areas the ratio is one to five, one to five and one to seven. There’s a marked difference.”

“Rural nurses and midwives want to deliver good levels of care in emergency departments and across all wards and units. They believe nurseto-patient ratios in their places of work should be the same as those in the cities.”

Nurse-to-patient ratios for regional, rural and remote hospitals and clinics were one focal point of a widespread strike that took place in Sydney and across numerous sites throughout New South Wales on Wednesday 24 July.

Hundreds of nurses and midwives joined the statewide strike, with Sydney Olympic Park as the focal point for the state’s capital, to protest against the O’Farrell Government’s inadequate funding of the sector. The strike was intended to highlight the government’s failure to provide guaranteed, safe nurse staffing levels in public hospitals, public hospital clinical units and community health services and equal ratios in all hospitals around the state.

Brett Holmes, NSWNMA general secretary told NCAH rural nurses and midwives were particularly burdened by poor nurse-to-patient ratios.

Page 28 | www.ncah.com.au

“The Government seems to be saying that their need is not so great, but our members are saying: ‘Look at what we have to deal with. Nurses and midwives are trying to delivery care with scarce resources and little backup.’”

Rural nurses... believe nurseto-patient ratios in their places of work should be the same as those in the cities – Brett Holmes General Secretary NSWNMA

Holmes said the strike demonstrated a unified front by the nurses and midwives of New South Wales.

“The Government is sending out messages indicating that this kind of action won’t change anything, but nurses are standing up for patients by sending out their own strong message that current arrangements

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Nursing Careers Allied Health - Issue 15 | Page 29

Queensland nurses vow to fight job attacks

by Karen Keast after recently receiving a letter outlining the restructure.

“Some of them were in tears, they were so distressed that they couldn’t face going to work,” she said.

“They feel like they are just not valued and that they are disposable.

“They are absolutely shell-shocked and the shock is turning to anger now. They are just not going to take this anymore; they are going to fight back.”

Ms Mohle said the union had been campaigning for jobs for nursing graduates but said the axing of loyal and experienced nurses was “not the right way to go”.

Queensland nurses have warned they will continue to fight plans to replace 145 experienced nurses with graduate nurses at Metro North Hospital and Health Service.

The Queensland Nurses’ Union has labelled the workforce restructure a cost-cutting exercise which will target grade five and six nurses and midwives at four major hospitals on Brisbane’s northside.

“Our members are incredibly angry and very distressed,” QNU secretary Beth Mohle said.

“Our members are absolutely committed to taking further protest action. They are not going to take this lying down. They are furious and we are going to oppose this change tooth and nail.”

Nurses held meetings at Prince Charles Hospital and Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital and recently held a protest meeting to coincide with the annual Budget Estimates hearing outside Parliament House.

Ms Mohle said more than 3000 nurses and midwives across the service were left reeling Page 30 | www.ncah.com.au

She said the graduate nurses would be employed on a temporary basis while the move to axe experienced nurses would compromise safe patient care.

“It’s not about a graduate workforce strategy at all,” she said.

“They are also going to employ these graduates as part time, at .7 rather than full-time and they will be temporary. They are not secure, they are temporary jobs.”

Metro North Hospital and Health Service chief nurse Lesley Fleming said there had been some confusion around the planned changes to its workforce.

Ms Fleming said nurses will be offered voluntary redundancies in a bid to designate 140 places to graduate positions before the end of the year.

‘I would like to make it clear no nursing staff member will be forced to apply for, or take, a redundancy as part of this change,” she said.

Ms Mohle said the restructure was latest attack on jobs in the state, with 850 nursing and midwifery positions axed since the election of the Liberal State Government.

Nursing Careers Allied Health - Issue 15

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