The Australian College of Nursing (ACN) supports the Federal Government’s primary health care careers campaign as an exciting and important first step in revitalising the primary health care workforce, including recognising the vital role of nurses and midwives.
“The campaign shows just how varied nursing roles in the primary health care sector can be — from working in the outback as a remote area nurse to caring for paediatric patients in the community to visiting people in their homes to manage wounds,” ACN CEO Adjunct Professor Kathryn Zeitz FACN said today.
“Many nursing graduates head straight into the hospital system.
“It’s important to remind them that the career possibilities in the primary sector are just as exciting and expansive and offer nurses the ability to work independently and broaden their scope of practice.
“We hope that this campaign may also reinvigorate nurses who have left or are leaving the profession to stay and consider alternative rewarding career paths in primary health care.”
ACN has been calling for a $15 million dollar multimedia campaign to elevate the image of nursing to help improve the public’s understanding of nurses’ full scope of practice, so they can fully benefit from nurses’ expertise.
Nursing is often ranked the most trusted profession in Australia, but too often the systems that nurses work in limit their ability to care for patients using their full knowledge, skills, and experience.
“The system urgently needs changes to allow nurses to work to their full potential in all settings and all locations,” Adjunct Professor Zeitz said.
“This will improve the management of chronic health issues to not only deliver better health outcomes, but to ease the pressure on hospitals and health budgets.”
“Harnessing the full potential of nurses and midwives will deliver enormous gains to patients and the community, and the time to act is now.”
The ACN Pre-Budget Submission 2025-26 is at https://www.acn.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/pre-budget-submission-2025.pdf
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