May 2015
01 From the Chief
Executive
02 Introducing Joanne
Hopson
03 Check we have your
best email address
04 Nurses need to be authorised by the Council to gain prescribing rights
05 New Zealand graduate
and postgraduate nursing degrees approved as prescribed qualification for registered nurses
From the Chief
Executive
I am pleased to be able to tell you that the Nursing Council is working with nine other health regulators with a view to us all working from the same location and the Council providing them with a range of business functions on a cost-recovery basis. We are working together in accordance with our shared values as, despite our different spheres of practice, we all share a commitment to public safety under the Health Practitioners Competence
Assurance Act 2003. READ MORE
Best wishes
06 The results of your APC data 07 Code of Conduct training
Introducing Joanne Hopson
Joanne was the only newly elected member to join the Council following last year’s elections.
Joanne completed her Bachelor of Nursing at the Southern Institute of Technology, then moved to Auckland where she completed her Master of Health Sciences in Advanced Nursing. Her areas of expertise are cardiology, emergency and recovery.
She has worked in many areas of nursing across New Zealand as well as in Australia and believes in having high standards.
“I am aware of the need to have robust policies and procedures that must be adhered to. As a nurse working ‘on the floor’, I know what challenges and pressures nurses face and the need to support and help each other. Having recent emergency experience, I am familiar with the health expectations of patients and also their expectations of the nursing profession. I am passionate about nursing and will bring a fresh, vibrant, fair and open-minded approach to the Council.”
The other successful candidates were Catherine Byrne and Dr Jo Walton, who were standing for another term.
We thank all nurses who stood as candidates and all those who voted.
Joanne Hopson
Check we have your best email address
You are reminded that you are responsible for keeping the Council up to date with your contact and employment details. You need to provide us with your postal address, a reliable email address, your phone number and current employment. If you change jobs you need to update your details.
We have noted that there seems to be a problem with some nurses using work email addresses that might be blocking receipts of reminder emails about Annual Practising Certificate (APC) renewals. If this happens at your work, please send your personal email address/update to:
Nurses need to be authorised by the Council to gain
prescribing rights
Nurse practitioners and many diabetes nurses already prescribe medicines, but it is anticipated that in the next few years more nurses will be able to prescribe medicines to enhance patient care. Any nurse who prescribes must be authorised as a prescriber by the Council. This article gives an overview of the type of prescribing available and the proposals for new prescribing rights for nurses.
READ MORE
New Zealand graduate and postgraduate nursing
degrees approved as prescribed qualification for
registered nurses
The Council has approved changes to the prescribed qualifications for the Registered Nurse scope of practice to allow graduate and postgraduate qualifications in nursing to lead to registration.
Two-year pre-registration postgraduate programmes approved by the Nursing Council will provide an alternative pathway for suitably qualified graduates in health sciences, or other subjects, to enter nursing. READ MORE
The results of your APC data
trends in employment setting, clinical practice choices, geographic shifts and retention in the workforce.
The Nursing Cohort Report 2014, a longitudinal study following two groups of nurses – those who were registered in the year to March 2006 and a second cohort of more recently registered nurses – draws on data collected when nurses renew their Annual Practising Certificates. Those cohorts are further broken down into New Zealand and internationally qualified groups.
The 2006 cohort report shows significant attrition in the first eight years after registering, with 67% of New Zealand-educated nurses still practising compared with 47% of the internationally qualified nurses – a 42% attrition rate overall. Interestingly it shows that many nurses retain their practising certificates despite not practising.
One of the most striking differences between the two cohorts was the country of origin for
internationally qualified nurses. In the 2013 cohort 41% identified as Filipino, 26% as Indian and 19% as Other European (i.e. non-NZ European) – a significant change from the 2005/06 cohort in which Other European was the largest ethnic category.
This and lots more information can be found in the report here.
Professional development requirements on Code
of Conduct due
By July 2015 all nurses should have completed professional development on the Code of Conduct and Guidelines: Professional Boundaries as part of their continuing competence requirements. This requirement was set three years ago when the new Code was released. Although you are
required to complete professional development on the Code once, it is expected that you will continue to reference the Code in your daily practice.
If you haven’t completed this professional development, courses are available through District Health Boards, the New Zealand Nurses Organisation and the College of Nurses. The Council will also continue to offer presentations and workshops on the Code as required. Reactions to the workshops have been very positive and nurses have reported enjoying the opportunity to discuss challenging issues that they encounter in daily practice. Any employers wanting to organise workshops for staff should contact linda@nursingcouncil.org.nz.
P 0064 4 385 9589
F 0064 4 801 8502
E admin@nursingcouncil.org.nz
Level 12, Mid City Tower, 139 - 143 Willis St, Wellington, New Zealand
