National nursing organisations are backing a consensus statement that all new graduates have access to a government-subsidised new graduate programme in their first year.
The consensus statement on access to nurse entry to practice (NETP) and new entry to specialist practice (NESP) mental health and addiction programmes was agreed to following last month’s national nursing organisations (NNO) meeting.
The statement was one of three developed following discussions at the two well-attended nurse education forums hosted by the New Zealand Nurses Organisation. Jenny Carryer, executive director of the College of Nurses and chair of the NNO meeting, said leaders of all nine national nursing organisation groups were present at the meeting which reviewed the earlier education forum findings.
Judy Kilpatrick, chair of the New Zealand section of the council of nursing deans, said there was “absolute support” that a NETP for new graduates was essential.
Carryer said along with “strongly affirming” graduate access to NETP or NESP, there were two other statements looking at ongoing education and career planning for nurses.
The career planning consensus statement followed concerns that nurses were entering postgraduate education without “absolute clarity” about their career goals, Carryer said.
The statement calls for all nurses to be required to link their career planning with their education choices and their practice area.
Carryer said there needed to be “tighter links” between academic counselling from education institutions, district health board postgraduate funding co-coordinators and postgraduate student nurses to ensure nurses were clear about their own career goals.
She said nurses needed to decide whether they wanted to move into health management, clinical specialisation or an academic career and “these decisions should shape their journey”.
Kathy Holloway, co-coordinator of nurse educator group NETS said the consensus statements would be promulgated by the nine member organisations. “They provide a professional reference point for further consultation,” said Holloway. The statements would also inform the nursing position in future health workforce discussions.
The third consensus statement states that effective workforce development requires a “professional expectation” that learning and teaching are part of every nurse’s role.
Holloway is also working with the Nursing Council and chief nurse Jane O’Malley to develop a database to better track the attrition and retention of nursing students through undergraduate training programmes.
At present, data is gathered by nursing schools, the Tertiary Education Commission and, when students reach the point of sitting state finals, by Nursing Council, Holloway said.
She said the new database would build on the graduate destinations survey carried out by NETS and was still in its early days.
The NNO meeting was addressed by chief nurse Jane O’Malley about her proposed work plan for the year, and there were also discussions about holding a celebration next year to mark the registration of the country’s 100th nurse practitioner.
