New health recruitment and training initiatives are a start
Published: 01 November 2023
The Queensland Nurses and Midwives' Union (QNMU) says health recruitment and
training initiatives announced by the Health Minister yesterday were long overdue given
the current workforce crisis.
QNMU Secretary Kate Veach said nurses and midwives are exhausted and are concerned
for their patients.
“We welcome the government’s announcement to allow young Queenslanders to access
free TAFE for 13 health courses from 2024, including a Diploma of Nursing, and expand
the First Nations Deadly Start school-based traineeship program from 200 to 400 places,”
said Ms Veach.
“We are also pleased to hear about the new youth recruitment campaign to promote
careers in the public health sector, including nursing and midwifery.
“Nurses and midwives are the backbone and constant presence in our health system. We
want to be more involved in decisions being made about our health services and our
communities. We have the solutions, we just need to be listened to,” she said.
Ms Veach said the QNMU will eagerly respond to the draft Health Workforce Strategy for
Queensland to 2032, released by the government yesterday.
The draft strategy promises to deliver sustained increases in health workforce supply
through the establishment of new health workforce supply channels and the enhancement
of existing ones, as well as contemporary approaches to job and workforce design to
support innovative, responsive, technology-integrated models of care.
Ms Veach said the government’s announcement yesterday of $7 million for a trial allowing
regional trainee doctors to be employed by Queensland Health whilst also working in
private GP clinics and incentives of up to $70,000 to recruit interstate and overseas
doctors and health workers fell short of the vision for the new Health Workforce Strategy.
“Yesterday’s funding announcement failed to acknowledge opportunities for nurse and
midwife-led models or other multi-disciplinary models to be implemented in regions of
need,” Ms Veach said.
“As frontline healthcare professionals, our QNMU members are extremely concerned that
the shortage of GPs continues to put more and more pressure on already, overburdened
hospital EDs.
“This is why the government must look at sustainable, care-delivery models which
capitalise on the skill sets of all health workers. We look forward to further discussions with
government on these evidence-based models.
“Nurse and midwife-led clinics, utilising the skills and expertise of highly-trained nurse
practitioners and midwives, would ensure that Queenslanders, particularly those in
regional, remote and under-serviced urban areas, have access to quality and affordable
healthcare when and where they need it.
“Nurses and midwives represent the largest occupational group within the health system
and therefore have more potential to quickly grow the workforce at a time of chronic doctor
shortages.”
Ms Veach said nurse and midwife-led clinics could provide communities with a range of
prevention, education, intervention and wellness care services delivered via nurses and
midwives, in collaboration with other medical and allied health practitioners, providing
extended-hours services and provide an alternative to presenting to hospital EDs.
QNMU media contact: 0411 254 390.