Alison Mcmillan: How the federal government plans to support our hardworking nurses
Nurses are an irreplaceable part of our healthcare system. It’s about time we throw them a lifeline, writes Alison Mcmillan.
Opinion
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We are all tired of Covid-19 but the many thousands of people whose job it is to care for those seriously ill from the virus have extra reason to be.
The pandemic has been with us for almost three years now and health care workers, including nurses, across the country have worked so hard throughout this time to care for patients who have become severely sick with Covid.
Of course, it’s not just Covid. People have needed to access health care to address any number of other issues, including, for instance, to manage diabetes and other chronic conditions – and just to ensure they remain fit and healthy.
But we are now in another wave of Covid, and the rise in case numbers and proportionate increase in the number of people needing care and, in severe cases, being hospitalised is placing a significant extra burden on our health systems.
Without nurses, our health care system simply wouldn’t be able to operate. Nurses, along with midwives, comprise the largest group of health professionals in the country, making up more than half the total number. They are professionals, dedicated to the health and wellbeing of their patients.
I particularly want to acknowledge Australia’s nurse practitioners who have performed so brilliantly throughout the pandemic – and continue to do so – to care for their patients.
Nurse practitioners are highly experienced nurses who have completed additional university studies at Masters level and have the expertise to diagnose and prescribe treatments.
They have a vital role in patient care across Australia’s health and aged care sectors.
My message to Australia’s nurses, now we are in another Covid wave, is to make sure you also look after yourselves. It’s understandable if you feel tired or burned out.
It’s important as nurses you care for each other and reach out for support if you need it.
Mental health support has been embedded in the broader health workforce through organisations such as the Mental Health Professionals Network – and Head to Health can also help you to find support from some of Australia’s most trusted mental health organisations.
The Government is also funding the rollout of a National Nurse and Midwife Health Service to help Australia’s nurses and midwives to better manage their health and wellbeing through counselling and support services. The Australian Government is committed to strengthening the nursing workforce.
A National Nursing Workforce Strategy and the Increasing Access to Health and Aged Care: a strategic plan for the nurse practitioner workforce, are being developed.
This work will be aligned with the work of the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce, which will make a series of recommendations to the Government about how to make healthcare more affordable and accessible.
The Nurse Practitioner Strategic Plan will identify ways to address the challenges and barriers nursing practitioners face, in turn helping to promote workforce sustainability especially in the primary health care system.
We are building a system where primary health care can be delivered by multidisciplinary teams – including nurses who are empowered to work to their full scope of practice – to better meet the needs of patients.
Nurses are already an irreplaceable part of our healthcare system. They’re highly skilled. They’re totally dedicated.
The work that is under way to reform and strengthen the health workforce recognises this and will put the structures in place to enable our nurses to deliver the highest quality care possible.
– Professor Alison McMillan is the Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer
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