nurses
Written by Jack Porter - Trainee Underwriter - Casualty
Nurses
Nurses are essential health professionals who care for people (individuals, families, groups and communities) in all health and aged care settings. They assess, plan and administer daily treatment and manage your general health. They can also direct you to the right people to speak to about specific medical issues.
In Australia, a nurse is a regulated health professional. Nurses complete approved training pathways to become registered to practice with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) who works with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) to regulate the profession.
Settings where nurses work may include:
public and private hospitals
aged care (both residential and home)
primary care practices including general practice
community health services
rural and remote communities
Enrolled nurse (EN)
To achieve the standards of practice, Ens must complete a Diploma of Nursing through a vocational education provider. ENs work under the supervision of a registered nurse and cannot act alone. Typical duties include:
regularly recording patients’ temperature, pulse, blood pressure and respiration
providing interventions, treatments and therapies from patient care plans
assisting RNs with health education activities
working in multidisciplinary teams
helping patients with their activities of daily living
Registered nurse (RN)
RNs complete a Bachelor of Nursing or a Master of Nursing through a university to meet the RN standards for practice. They have more responsibilities than an EN, and their scope of practice may include:
assessing patients
developing a nursing care plan
administering medicines
providing specialised nursing care
working in multidisciplinary teams
performing leadership and management roles such as being a nursing unit manager or team leader
Nurse practitioner (NP)
NPs are RNs who the NMBA have endorsed as an NP. NPs practice independently in an advanced and extended clinical role and can prescribe some medicines. To be eligible for an NP endorsement, a nurse must:
be a registered nurse with no restrictions on practice
have 5,000 hours of experience at the advanced clinical nursing practice level in the past 6 years
have completed an approved program of study at a master degree level, and
comply with the NMBA’s nurse practitioner standards for practice.
State and territory governments employ most NPs in acute care settings. Private settings also employ NPs, either as employees or in their own practice.
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