NurseClick – Issue 12

The big issue - 2010 is International Year of the Nurse!

2010 marks the 100th anniversary of the death of Florence Nightingale, who is celebrated for pioneering the foundations of the nursing profession. To commemorate her life, and to celebrate the dedication and achievements of nurses who continue to improve the standards of health around the world today, we are delighted to announce that 2010 has been declared the International Year of the Nurse (IYN).

The IYN is a joint initiative of the Nightingale Initiative for Global Health (NIGH), Sigma Theta Tau International and the Florence Nightingale Museum, London. RCNA will be supporting the effort to acknowledge the hard work and commitment of Australian nurses in promoting healthy lifestyles, providing world-class care and ensuring timely health care for all Australians.

RCNA will also be supporting and promoting the broader aim of the initiative, which is to highlight the key importnace of the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). These are urgent international needs that must be addressed to ensure equal human rights and improved health outcomes and expectations across the globe. The UN aims to achieve these goals by 2015.

RCNA is urging Gary Quinlan, the Australian Ambassador to the United Nations, to initiate or support a Resolution to recognise the role of nurses in the concerted effort to achieve the MDGs, and to support 2010 as the International Year of the Nurse.

The MDGs which will be especially highlighted through the IYN campaign will be the need for immediate and international action to reduce infant and maternal mortality rates.

RCNA will be supporting the IYN throughout the year through further updates in NurseClick and other RCNA publications, and encourages members to send in their nursing stories and personal profiles about their work in the community for publication. Nurses are integral to ensuring quality of life and we are committed to celebrating your dedication, your successes and achievements.

The big issue - Coalition of Australian Governments focus on health

The Coalition of Australian Governments (COAG) was established in May 1992 and is an intergovernmental alliance consisting of the Prime Minister, the State Premiers, Territory Chief Ministers and the President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA). COAG has an important policy role in Australia, and meets as required to discuss, implement and monitor policies and issues that are of national importance. Some examples of issues that require intergovernmental, collaborative action as stated on the COAG website include water reform, the use of human embryos in medical research, counter-terrorism arrangements and health reform.

When COAG met for its 28th meeting on 7 December 2009, health reform was at the top of the agenda and further, was established as a central priority on 2010. Whilst it was acknowledged that Australia benefits from a world-class health system, COAG was also reminded of the current pressures on the health and hospital system, and the emerging issues creating further fractures, including the increasing burden of chronic disease, rising health costs and workforce shortages, and an ageing population.

In discussing options for a health reform plan, COAG considered the recommendations of the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission (NRRHC) final report, the draft National Primary Health Care Strategy and the National Preventative Health Strategy.

COAG signed an agreement to develop the ‘legislative, governance and administrative framework’ towards a national e-health system, with the aim to support more comprehensive and accurate patient records.

COAG also agreed to a National Partnership to reduce waiting lists for elective surgery.

It was decided that the Prime Minister would recommend a 'decision-making process' to respond to the reports' recommendations by the end of December 2009, and to recommend specific proposals to the states in the 'first half of 2010'.

Opportunities

Draft ADHD guidelines released

The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) and National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) have made available updated draft Australian guidelines on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and other useful information to assist parents and medical professionals to recognise and appropriately treat ADHD.

Click here to read the full media release
Click here to access the guidelines

VTE prevention guidelines

The NHMRC’s National Institute of Clinical Studies (NICS) has developed an evidence-based clinical practice guideline for the prevention of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients admitted to Australian hospitals.
The guideline provides practical, evidence-based recommendations for the prevention of VTE in adult surgical and medical patients and pregnant women admitted to Australian metropolitan, regional and rural hospitals. The recommendations should be followed subject to clinician judgement and patient preferences.

Click here to access the guidelines.

New board member sought for the Nurses Memorial Centre, Melbourne

The Nurses Memorial Centre was formally established following a public appeal initiated by Victorian Nurses who had returned from the Second World War. NMC is a ‘living memorial’ to the heroism and sacrifice of Australian nurses who gave their life or spent years in Japanese prisoner-of-war camps during World War II.

NMC has the dual role of being a keeper of the archives of its unique history and being a responsible steward for the award of scholarship funds to outstanding nursing graduates.

The President of the Nurses Memorial Centre, Melbourne is now calling for Expressions of Interest from members of the Victorian community to join the Board of Directors of the Centre.

Click here for further information.

ICU nurses offered tool to prevent deadly medication mistakes

Colorsafe IV Lines are dedicated to enhancing patient safety by helping to reduce the possibility of intravenous medication errors while multiple medications are being administered.

An additional safety measure is added through the use of colour tinted IV lines in combination with corresponding colour-coded labels.

Click here for more information

Handbook for allied health researchers

The Menzies Foundation has recently published a Handbook for Allied Health Researchers. The Handbook, designed to promote research in clinical practice and to assist new researchers to get started, is the result of a multidisciplinary collaboration across allied health disciplines including psychologists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists and social workers. Copies can be purchased for $33 (incl GST) plus postage.

Click here to order a copy of the handbook

Program launched to assess vaccination of health care workers

The Influenza Specialist Group (ISG) is calling on healthcare professionals to participate in an online survey to inform vaccination uptake best practice.

Healthcare professionals that participate in the ISG survey they will go in to the running to win a $250 gift voucher.

Click here to complete the questionnaire

An important reminder for aged care providers in heat wave conditions

The Australian Government, Department of Health and Ageing, has issued a reminder for aged care service providers to take appropriate precautions to protect the aged in their care during heat wave conditions.

Click here to see the recommendations

New CareSearch information pages

CareSearch has introduced two new information and resources pages on health issues for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals. The information is for health professionals, patients and their families.

The two new pages are:

Issues for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals
Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (for patients and families)

International nursing news

About RCNA

Member Advantage!

Looking forward

Top links

WWII hospital ship Centaur found after 66 years

National health reform update

What else happened this month?