Daylight savings time starts this weekend: Check your award and prioritise sleep
It’s that time again – adjusting clocks in most of Australia’s eastern states to enjoy longer evening sunlight during summer. Nurses and midwives in the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria will lose an hour when the clocks are moved forward at 2am (to 3am) this Sunday 6 October. If […]
Queensland’s historic 10 days paid reproductive health leave takes effect
Queensland public sector nurses and midwives are now able to access 10 days paid reproductive leave, with the state setting the bar for the rest of the country to follow. Announced on Labour Day in May, the historic access to 10 days per annum (non-cumulative) paid reproductive health leave came into effect on Monday. More than […]
The importance of supporting older nurses and midwives in the workplace
The healthcare sector is experiencing unprecedented challenges. There is an increasing demand for healthcare services partially attributed to the global ageing population (1); however, healthcare services worldwide are grappling with nursing and midwifery shortages. Many countries struggle to train and retain enough nurses to meet the growing demand, leading to overworked staff and compromised patient […]
Nurses and midwives invited to take part in sleep study
Sleep is essential for health and wellbeing. However, many nurses and midwives struggle to achieve good sleep and sometimes consider poor sleep an inevitable part of the professions. Researchers from the University of South Australia (UniSA) are collecting information about supports, strategies, policies and programs that nurses and midwives have tried, would like and/or are […]
Light at the end of the tunnel for night shift workers
The use of circadian-informed lighting, where artificial lighting is synchronised to the natural biological rhythms or a person’s ‘body-clock’, significantly improves quality of sleep and work performance for night shift workers, a new trial has found. The Flinders University trial is amongst the first tightly controlled in-laboratory studies to have simultaneously evaluated circadian-lighting effects on […]
Welcoming midwives: A look back at the ANF’s 2013 name change to recognise midwife members
On July 25, 2013, the union formally changed its name from the ANF to the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) to acknowledge the valuable skills and knowledge of midwife members. History was made after the union’s then Federal Secretary, Lee Thomas, and late Senior Federal Industrial Officer Nick Blake, put the case forward at […]
Contraceptive and medical abortion model of care in rural areas
An innovative co-designed model of care has been developed to help elevate the role of nurses in contraceptive and medical abortion care in rural and regional areas. The model has been developed as part of the landmark ORIENT study which involves nurses gaining the knowledge and skills to insert contraceptive devices and support delivery of […]
NMBA freezes registration fees for 2024/25
The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) and the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) have frozen their annual registration fee for nurses and midwives for 2024/25 The cost of renewing general registration for nurses and midwives will remain at $185. The fee will cover the upcoming registration period commencing on 1 April 2025. […]
NSW nurses and midwives to stage 24-hour strike next week
NSW nurses and midwives are ramping up their campaign for a 15% pay increase, planning a 24-hour strike next week over the state government’s ongoing refusal to engage in meaningful negotiations. Thousands of nurses and midwives will strike for 24 hours from the start of morning shift on Tuesday 24 September. However, life-preserving staff will […]
Humour a primary health initiative, says nurse comedian
Lucy Downey, a nurse from NSW, has been telling stories all her life, but her journey into stand-up comedy began at a rather unexpected moment—her father’s wake. “He always said I was a good storyteller and that I should get up and share them. I thought, what better time than now, in front of over […]