The Advanced Skills Enrolled Nurse Project

The Nursing/Midwifery (SA Public Sector) Enterprise Agreement 2010 provides for the introduction of the Advanced Skills Enrolled Nurse (ASEN) position in the South Australian nursing and midwifery career structure, operative from 1 st December 2011. The ASEN position is a merit based appointment as determined and required by individual health services/units.

The Advanced Skills Enrolled Nurse is an Enrolled Nurse who will either:

• Hold an Advanced Diploma of Enrolled Nursing and have three years full time equivalent experience in the relevant clinical areas; OR
• Have five years full time equivalent experience in the relevant clinical area and have demonstrated advanced skills and knowledge in client/patient assessment, care management and leadership responsibilities.

SA Health has worked in conjunction with representatives from health services and the ANMF (SA Branch) in developing a ‘Toolkit for Implementation of the ASEN role in South Australia’.

The Toolkit provides a framework for health services/units to undertake strategic service planning to determine and establish the ASEN role if relevant to the health service/unit. The guiding principles have been developed with stakeholders to assist Nursing and Midwifery Leaders in the establishment of consistent processes in the strategic planning, determination and implementation of the ASEN role across SA Health sites. Four stages for the integration of the ASEN role have been identified as:

• Initiation ‘Establishing the need’
• Strategic Service planning
• Implementation; and
• Evaluation.

The ‘Toolkit for Implementation of the ASEN role in South Australian’ is now available
Access the Toolkit below:

- ASEN Toolkit
- ASEN Service Planning Template
- ASEN Business Change Template
- Generic ASEN JP&S Template
- Example Questions for Interview Panels

For more information:

Employees should contact their line manager, or local Human Resources department, or Director
of Nursing/Midwifery, or the local ANMF worksite representative/organiser for further information about the Advanced Skills Enrolled Nurse role in South Australia.

The Nursing and Midwifery Capability and Self Development Framework

SA Health in the commitment to ensuring a responsive workforce has, in conjunction with health services and the ANMF (SA Branch) produced a Nurisng and Midwifery Capability and Self Development Framework as outlined in the Nursing and Midwifery (SA Public Sector) Enterprise Agreement 2010. The Framework establishes the processes and systems to be used by health services and the public sector nursing and midwifery workforce in developing knowledge skills and competencies that will meet the needs of clients now and into the future.  

The purpose of the Nursing and Midwifery Capability and Self-Development Framework is to:

• Guide nurses and midwives at all levels to continue their professional development within the context of life long learning.
• Guide health service organisations in their development of appropriate and relevant strategies of workforce and professional development.
• Provide direction and supporting structures to enable the planning and implementation of staff professional development opportunities for career enhancement

The Framework has been developed by the members of the Nursing and Midwifery Enterprise Agreement 2010 Capability Development Framework Working Party.  The Working Party comprised of nurses and midwives from health units across SA Health, educators, representatives from the Department of Health including the Nursing and Midwifery Office and the ANMF (SA Office).

Nursing and Midwifery Capability and Self Development Framework is now available.

click here to access the framework.

Implementation at Health Units

The Director of Nursing and Midwifery in your health service is responsible to oversight the
implementation of the Framework. The Framework will be placed on the Quarterly Professional
Development Forums as a standing item as a requirement of the Professional Development
Clause 4.8.7, N&M Enterprise Agreement 2010.

For more information

Employees should contact their line manager, or local Human Resources department, or Director
of Nursing/Midwifery, or the local ANMF worksite representative/organiser for further information about the Framework.

Bringing Nurses Back Into The Workforce (BNBW)

As part of the Australian Government's health reform package, the Government will redirect funding from the Bringing Nurses Back into the Workforce Program to a number of new nursing initiatives, including the Rural Nursing Locum Scheme, Building Nursing Careers in Aged Care, Aged Care Nurse Practitioner - Models of Practice Projects and the National Regulation of Personal Care Workers/Assistants in Nursing project.

Nurses already participating in the Bringing Nurses Back into the Workforce Program, and who continue to be eligible, will receive incentive payments. However, no new applications will be accepted beyond 11 May 2010.

Click here for more information

The National Aged Care Nurse Practitioner Trial

The National Aged Care Nurse Practitioner Trial is a funded initiative of the Australian Government, Department of Health and Ageing, commenced in August 2005. The trial has involved establishing Nurse Practitioner (NP) services in aged care settings and aims to inform the Department of Health and Ageing, aged care sector, nursing and medical profession, legislation and regulatory bodies.

The Aged Care Nurse Practitioner is based upon six sites across four jurisdictions. The six trial sites are New South Wales (one site, one Nurse Practitioner Candidate (NPC)), Western Australia (two sites, two NPC), South Australia (two sites, one NP and one NPC) and the Australian Capital Territory (two sites, two NPC).

The South Australian trial sites are Resthaven Inc. which is an Aged Care Community Service of the Uniting Church (one NPC) and Barossa Village Inc. Aged and Retirement Services, Nuriootpa (one NP).

The initial Aged Care Nurse Practitioner Pilot Project (ACNPPP 2004 -2005) was a joint project between Australian Capital Territory and the Australian Department of Health and Ageing.

Click here to download the Aged Care Nurse Practitioner Pilot Project (ACNNP): Final Report July 2005.

Non-Medical Prescribing Program (Ms Alison Hogg)

Ms Alison Hogg, a Programme Leader for Non Medical Prescribing School of Education, Health and Sciences University of Derby, UK, was recently awarded a prestigious university Award of Excellence for curriculum development for the first inter-professional non medical prescribing program in the UK. Ms Hogg has a MSc in Health Care and a BSc (1st Class Hons) Education Studies (Nursing) and has a clinical background as a registered nurse.

The extension of prescribing rights is a critical issue in health workforce reform in Australia. Such rights have been granted in the UK under a variety of regulatory and legislative models. Ms Hogg presented on workforce reform context that has led to enhanced roles such as prescribing. She also:

• explained different prescribing models relevant to the professions and the competencies and educational requirements to up-skill the professions to undertake these new roles;
• outlined the course content, assessment and the models of medical supervision during training as well as the learning outcomes inherent in running a successful program;
• defined the regulatory environment required to assure safety and quality; and
• outlined the difficult issues that emerged when developing the prescribing role for new professions.

Ms Hogg is currently conducting a series of seminars across Australia to further the debate and understanding of the issues relating to non-medical prescribing.

Click here to download the presentation given by Ms Hogg that was held in Adelaide on 8 February 2007 (366KB).

For further papers relating to Alison's presentation and the course offered at Derby University, please click here.

Additional Articles:

BTEC Professional Diploma (Aseptic Services) (184KB)
BTEC Professional Diploma (Clinical Pharmacy Technicians) (178KB)
Clinical Management Plans (UK Nursing & Midwifery Council) (37KB)
Supplementary Prescribing by Nurses Pharmacists, Chiropodists/Podiatrists, Physiotherapists and Radiographers within the NHS in England (295KB)
Medicine Matters - A guide to mechanisms for the prescribing, supply and administration of medicines (168KB)
Standards of Proficiency for Nurse and Midwife Prescribers (262KB)

Pressure Ulcer Prevention Practices - Integration of Evidence (PUPPIES)

The aim of the Department of Health's pressure ulcer prevention and management program is to focus efforts on reducing the number of patients who develop pressure ulcers within health. The South Australian Department of Health has worked with expert clinicians across the state to develop a resource document which supports organisational examination of the effectiveness of local pressure ulcer prevention and management frameworks.

The 'Pressure Ulcer Prevention and Management Practices Integration of Evidence' resource document aims to build on the work of the Australian Wound Management Association (AWMA).

Click here to download the document which will provide a detailed explanation of the issues facing an organisation beginning to implement and evaluate a pressure ulcer prevention framework and provides examples of:

• Tools;
• Flow charts; and
• Educational pamphlets.

Useful Links:

South Australian Safety and Quality
Australian Wound Management Association (AWMA)
European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (EU)
National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (USA)
National Institute of Clinical Excellence (UK)
Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (Canada)