Nurse-to-patient ratios have been met with concern after coming into effect last week at Perth Children’s Hospital. Last Monday, nurse-to-patient ratios of one nurse to every three patients started at Perth Children’s Hospital emergency department, with other emergency departments following ...
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Aged Care Minister quizzed on 24/7 nursing care and funding levy
Australians won't be given a new time frame for the introduction of 24/7 nurses onsite in aged care homes after Labor conceded the July 1 deadline would be 'impossible to meet.' On Sunday, Aged Care Minister Anika Wells said she ...
More »Everything aged care nurses need to know about the 24/7 mandate
Nursing Review delved deeper into the details of reporting, breaks, and exemptions as the round-the-clock nursing mandate is to become law on July 1. The reform has emerged as a significant concern, especially for small and rural aged care facilities grappling with a ...
More »‘Hunger games for nurses’: expert calls for national approach to tackle shortages
Australia needs a federally coordinated approach to address chronic shortages in hospitals rather than a statewide effort to lure staff through incentives, according to a nursing expert. In May, Queensland's health department announced it would offer health workers up to $20,000 ...
More »Medicare revamp may break down barriers for nurses
The government's medicare overhaul could give nurses a more prominent role in diagnosing and prescribing medication for patients in healthcare settings. Last week, Labor flagged the Medicare system as 'unfit for purpose' after data revealed that bulk-billing rates had plummeted ...
More »The need to reinvent nursing’s ‘martyr’ image: podcast
In an attempt to plug staffing gaps, the Victorian government has started offering free degree places in nursing, but experts say this solution ignores the elephant in the room. According to Dr Lesley Andrew from Edith Cowan University, nursing has ...
More »US scientists closing in on designing a universal Covid vaccine: podcast
North Carolina-based scientists say they may have designed a universal vaccine that could protect us from current and future Covid strains, but progress is being held back due to funding issues. The dominant BA.4 and BA.5 strains have proven to ...
More »‘It’s time for action’: nursing chief calls for staffing gap to be filled: podcast
Last week, nurses and midwives took to the streets demanding more staff, and better pay and work conditions. Organised by NSW's Nurses and Midwives Association, this year's third strike came in response to the state's health workforce boost that's planning ...
More »What the budget means for our health and aged care sectors – five ideas to start reform: opinion
After the challenges of funding significant spending on COVID-19, 2021’s $17.7bn aged care reform package and the additional $2.1bn for mental health, it was not unreasonable to expect that 2022’s pre-election budget would be less exciting for health than previous ...
More »New ‘paternalistic’ telehealth changes may be unconstitutional, warns expert
A new voluntary patient registration scheme is set to come into effect in July as part of the government's primary care health plan. Under the new reforms, all public health care patients in Australia will be required to register with ...
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