Jointly commissioned by the Minister for Health and Ageing and the Minister for Education, Science and Training
Update
On 16 September 2002 former Minister for Education, Science and Training Dr Brendan Nelson MP and former Minister for Health and Ageing Senator Kay Patterson released the final report for the National Review of Nursing Education Our Duty of Care.
The review would like to thank everyone who has participated in the consultation process, providing submissions and responding to the Discussion Paper.
National Nursing and Nursing Education Taskforce
On 28 November 2003 Australian Government, State and Territory Health Ministers announced the establishment of a national nursing taskforce to drive major nursing education and workforce reforms.
Further information:
Budget 2003/2004
In 2002, the Australian Government conducted a review of Australia’s higher education system. The Government’s response to the Review was announced on 13 May 2003 as part of the 2003/2004 Budget process. The Reform package lays the foundation for a ten year vision for Australian higher education, with more than $1.4 billion of additional Commonwealth funding being invested in the sector over four years.
The package identifies nursing and teaching as key areas of National Priority and will provide additional support for there areas.
Ministers Announcement
Ministers’ Announcement – 16 September 2002 
Nursing education is a matter of interest to governments both State and Commonwealth. The initial education and training of registered and specialist nurses is principally the responsibility of universities, primarily funded by the Commonwealth education portfolio. The training of enrolled nurses occurs in the Technical and Further Education Institutions of the States. State Governments have a direct interest in their role as the dominant employers of nurses. Nursing workforce issues are matters for both the Commonwealth and State health portfolios. These various responsibilities in relation to education policy, funding and employment all impact on nursing education.
In line with the global movement of preparatory nursing courses into universities, in August 1984 the Commonwealth announced its in-principle support for the transfer of registered nurse preparation from the hospitals into the higher education sector. This transfer was a staged process with different States changing at different times, but the transfer was complete by the end of 1993. In 1994, a review of nursing education in Australian universities examined the outcomes of this transition, in particular, the provision of wider professional preparation and increased career choices for nurses. The findings of the review were that the effects of the transfer of nurse education to the universities had been uneven. The review also found that the broader professional preparation of nurses had been an achievement of the transfer, but tensions between this preparation and the conditions of institutional employment existed. Further, there were outstanding issues of the status of nursing in the universities and the relationships between the various stakeholders and their divergent expectations.
Since the review, issues of the nexus between nursing education and the demands of the labour market have become a focus of concern. There appear to be general nursing workforce shortages as well as shortages in some specialist areas. Other factors affecting the nursing labour market include the demands of new technologies; clients expectations; status, pay and conditions; and the increasing demand for chronic and disability nursing as the population ages. The reduced level of interest of school leavers in nursing as a career, the cost of nursing preparation, the changing demands of the labour market in terms of the types of knowledge and skills required and the timing and distribution of those needs, create a highly complex relationship between the education of nurses and the labour market. This is an appropriate time to examine these issues through a review of nursing education to ensure that nursing education meets the needs of the changing labour market.
Terms of Reference
- Against this background the review will examine: the effectiveness of current arrangements for the education and training of nurses encompassing enrolled, registered and specialist nurses; factors in the labour market that affect the employment of nurses and the choice of nursing as an occupation; and the key factors governing the demand for, and supply of nursing education and training.
The review will specifically make recommendations on:
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models of nurse education and training to meet the emerging labour force, including practical training, processes for articulation between different levels of competency and professional expertise and re-entry into the workforce
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the types of skills and knowledge required to meet the changing needs of the labour force involved in nursing, and
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mechanisms for both attracting new recruits to nursing including those from different age groups (both male and female) and encouraging the commitment to life-long learning of those already engaged in nursing.
- It is expected that the review will consider the following wider issues from the perspective of both the health industry and education:
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the changing context of nursing and health requirements and the levers influencing these changes, and
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the links between nursing, medicine and other groups in the health workforce (including those with no health qualifications) in the provision of health services.
- In carrying out its work, the Review will have regard to:
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regional needs and circumstances
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financing arrangements, and
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the work of current research projects and reviews such as the New Zealand review of nursing education, the Australian Health Workforce Advisory Committee nursing workforce review, and the British review of funding for nursing.
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Reference Group
As a part of the review process Dr Kemp and Dr Wooldridge invited a number of the key stakeholder organisations to nominate a representative to the Reference Group, which was established to assist the review panel by providing expert advice on working papers and acting as a sounding board to the reviewers. The reference group was not a decision making body. Rather the review panel drew on the particular expertise and experience of key stakeholders on specific issues raised during the review.
The list of organizations invited to nominate to the National Review of Nursing Education is:
- Australian Council of Deans of Nursing
- Association of Australian Rural Nurses
- The Council of Remote Area Nurses of Australia Inc
- Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses CATSIN
- Royal College of Nursing Australia
- Australian Health Ministers' Advisory Council (2 nominees)
- Australian Private Hospitals Association
- TAFE Directors Australia
- Youth Round Table
- Australian Vice Chancellors Committee
- Group of 8
- Australian Nursing Council Inc
- Australian Local Government Association
- Catholic Health Australia
- Aged and Community Services Australia
- Department of Veterans Affairs
- National Rural Health Alliance
- Australian Nursing Federation
- Australian Nursing Homes and Extended Care Association
- Australian & New Zealand College of Mental Health Nurses Inc. (ANZCHHN Inc)
- Australian Technology Network
- Australian Healthcare Association
- Consumer Health Forum
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Review process
We welcomed participation in this Review from persons and organisations wishing to express views on some or all the terms of reference relating to the review.
Information was collected via a range of activities and sources during the review. The review panel wishes to share as much of that information as possible.
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The consultations process was extensive. Members of the review panel had two rounds of meetings with stakeholders in all States and Territories throughout September-October 2001 and February-March-April 2002. The process involved the review panel meeting State and Territory Health Departments, Nursing Boards, branches of the Australian Nursing Federation and other interest groups. Public consultation meetings also took place in every State and Territory. All the information collected by the review panel and the secretariat was processed, summarised and studied. It became a part of the Discussion Paper. It also played an important role in writing the final report for the review Our Duty of Care.
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A total of 159 submissions were received by the secretariat for the National Review of Nursing Education.
Submissions are published on the website unless the author has sought confidentiality or in the view of the Review Chair, on the advice of the review panel, a submission contains material which could cause some harm.
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The review welcomed anyone interested in the review to submit their comments to the Discussion Paper released in December 2001. The Discussion Paper offered a number of questions for comments. The secretariat received 153 comments to the document. The comments have been very useful in working towards the development of final recommendations and the review report.
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Research & Review Papers
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All of the Review Publications can be downloaded from this website as either PDF and/or HTML files.
Hard copies of the Reviews publications can be purchased from AusInfo via:
AusInfo's Government Info Shops in Capital Cities, or:
AusInfo Sales and Distribution
Mail Order Sales
GPO Box 84
Canberra ACT 2601
Phone (02) 6295 4411
A small print run has also done by the Review Subject to availability copies can be obtained from the Department of Education Science and Training or the Department of Health and Ageing - free to interested parties.
General enquiries about publications should be emailed to highered@dest.gov.au.
When making enquiries, please assist by providing as much detail as possible to identify the relevant publication. e.g. Title/Author/Series/Year of release etc.
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Contacts for further information
The Secretariat for the National Review of Nursing Education is now closed. If you have any queries regarding the Review you can contact:
The Department of Education, Science and Training on (02)6240 8993
Or
Department of Health and Ageing, Workforce Education and Training Section (02)6289 7489