8 November 1999

Re-thinking Nursing - National Nursing Workforce Forum

A National Nursing Workforce Forum was held in Canberra on 20 & 21 September, 1999. Initiated by the Australian Health Ministers Advisory Council (AHMAC) as a result of increasing concerns regarding the worldwide shortages of nurses, especially in specialty areas, the Forum attracted over 170 participants, including Directors of Nursing, Nurse Academics, Nurse Clinicians, representatives of specialist nursing groups, ANF representatives, health bureaucrats and consumer and employer representatives.

The Forum examined the role of health and nursing into the future, the nursing workforce requirements and priority issues for nursing and ways to address the challenges facing the future nursing workforce. Changes to health care delivery and educational funding were identified as key factors influencing the future direction of nursing. The shifting of responsibilities between state and federal jurisdictions was also a major factor in limiting a strategic response to nursing issues.

For attendees who participated in the Queensland Recruitment and Retention Taskforce, there was a real sense of déjà vu as representatives from other states echoed the problems identified out of the Queensland experience.

Despite the divergent groups at the Forum there was consensus on three points which are to go to AHMAC as recommendations. These were:

• The establishment of a National Nursing Workforce Committee  
• The need to develop a National Nursing Workforce strategy 
• The need for the establishment of an appropriately resourced Chief Nursing Officer Position at the federal level. 

The profession will await the outcome of AHMAC's deliberations over these recommendations as it is clear without some nationally coordinated federal response nursing shortages will continue.