Nurses and midwives initiatives and programs

The Australian Government is delivering a payment to registered nurses who work for the same aged care employer for 6 or 12 months.

The Aged Care Transition to Practice (ACTTP) program provides nurses with mentoring, training and support at the start of their career in aged care.

The Australian Cancer Nursing and Navigation Program aims to ensure all people with cancer have access to high quality and culturally safe care.

The Australian Nurse–Family Partnership Program supports women who are pregnant with an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander baby to help them become the best mum possible. Nurses make home visits to provide guidance during early pregnancy, the baby's infancy and into toddlerhood.

We contribute funding for these scholarships, which support nursing students to complete their major clinical placement and graduating year in a rural or remote area. The aim is to encourage students to pursue a nursing career in rural Australia.

This project aims to remove the legislative need for collaborative arrangements between participating midwives, nurse practitioners and medical practitioners to provide Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) services and prescribe Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) medications.

This initiative reduces outstanding Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) debt for eligible doctors and nurse practitioners who live and work in rural, remote or very remote areas of Australia.

We are developing a National Nursing Workforce Strategy to address workforce challenges and support the nursing profession to deliver person-centred, evidence-based and compassionate care to Australian communities across all sectors now and into the future.

The Nurse Practitioner Workforce Plan supports nurse practitioners to deliver health and aged care. The plan addresses barriers that have prevented them from working to their full potential.

We fund a range of scholarship opportunities through the Australian College of Nursing including nursing, midwifery, aged care, undergraduate and postgraduate scholarships. Preference is given to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants.

The Puggy Hunter Memorial Scholarship Scheme (PHMSS) assists entry-level First Nations students to complete their studies and join the health workforce. From 1 July 2024, the PHMSS will transition to a First Nations-led organisation with no changes for current and future scholarship recipients.

Rural LAP provides locums so that rural health professionals can attend continuing professional development or take vacation leave. The program also funds GPs to do extra training so they can become rural locums.

The initiative supports nurses moving into primary health care and encourages them to have a central role in team-based approaches to delivering care.

The Transition to Practice Program provides an evidence-based framework of support over 12 months to nurses who have transitioned to primary health care and feel they would benefit from additional support. We fund the Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association (APNA) to provide this program.