SisterKate

Well, you did better than me then....

Hi Grace... I only scare them when I have to....... you have to get some fun out of life! Just heard I'm going to be a Granny for the first time! Not really relevant to anyone but me, but its such joyous news I have to share it!

Hi Donna. I just go by SisterKate in public forums :wink2:. I have a Bachelor degree. Started my Masters but had to put it on hold to help care for my youngest brother who was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiform - the most malignant form of brain cancer. He managed to hang on for two years; then five weeks after he died, I was thinking of getting myself together to start studying again when my eldest sister was diagnosed with the same thing. She held on for a year. Its nearly a year since she died, and I haven't actually felt like doing any major study yet. We certainly have NP in Australia. The hospital I was working at until recently had the first 2 ED NPs in WA. They do all the fast track cases and help to keep the waiting times down significantly. I think NP is an excellent qualification and would probably do one myself if I was still working clinically. With the shortage of Doctors in all fields, NPs are the way to go. Good luck with your course.

Hi Donna. happy to help. I am currently working in Mental health but until recently was part of a large metro hospital where i worked on the executive at times and was responsible for the emergency dept among others. If I can't answer your questions, I can find someone who can! take care SisterKate:wink2:

Hi I work in MH in Perth. Happy to chat and pass on any info you might need.

Hi I have not employed a NZ nurse on a grad program, but only because I have not been asked!. I have had UK nurses on my grad programs. If you can register with an Australian Nurses Board you can get on a grad program in Aus.

Hi The graduate entry course in WA is just about to start so we don't have any students/grads to compare with the regular undergrad course. However, the undergrad course has a fair amount of generic material that you would undertake whatever degree course you did, and I would assume that the grad entry course would not have that content - you would be considered to already have done it. So the actual nursing content will probably be very similar, so you should not miss anything.:wink2: As an employer I am only interested in the fact that a nurse is Registered with the Nurses Board - this means they have undertaken an accredited training course and are deemed competent to work. The fact that it was a grad entry or otherwise would not be relevant. Honours would not count for anything either when applying for a position. My opinion is that you are much better getting out there and working. Honours is really a purely academic exercise. A post -grad program specialising in a particular area of interest would do you more good unless you particularly want to go down the academia road. If do you want to go onto Masters, you don't need Honours even then, although if you have it it may cut out a couple of units. In the long run though, doing Honours you will probably end up having done more study to get your Masters than if you had gone straight out into the workforce. (hope that makes sense!)

Hi being interviewed for a basic grade position by a DON is a bit heavy. As a Manager I did a lot of overseas telephone interviews and usually used a Clinical Nurse if I was interviewing for RNs or ENs. Now as a DON I leave the interviews to my managers. I don't want to frighten off prospective nursing staff!! (Not that I'm that scary)

I have worked in both Public and Private mental health. Mostly the private are less acute and do not take authorised patients, although there is one private hospital that takes mostly public patients. The public mental health units generally take the more acute end of the spectrum and are very short of nursing staff. There are not many coming out of the nursing education programmmes, which give comprehensive qualifications but with a very large emphasis on general nursing. If you are serious about working in Perth visit the Dept of health website or www.jobs.wa.gov.au. or www.seek.com. There are always adverts for MH nurses and good nurses are always welcome.

If you look on the Ramsayhealth website you will find Joondalup Hospital in Perth. They often take overseas students. Or you can ring them on 08 9400 9400 and ask for the Education Dept. The paeds dept is small and friendly and they have a level 2 Nicu. The hospital is a small general hospital so the paeds should have a good mixture of medical and surgical. The staff there are really great too. Enjoy your prac! When I did mine many years ago I wanted to take home all the babies. Decided I'd better stick to adult nursing!

Hi Patrick, good to see a post for that most maligned of nurses - the boss! I have been a manager for about 7 years and this year, after much acting executive experience, made the move to Nurse Director. What I have noticed is that most junior staff don't seem to realise that I have a boss too. Senior staff are subject to very stringent controls, not least being the budget - not that I worry too much about that actually. If I have to go over budget now and again to maintain safety, so be it ( I work in Mental Health these days - used to work in general, then managed both in prisons, now gravitated to specialise in MH).I find that I am attracted to jobs where there needs to be a lot of change. I really enjoy improving clinical standards and making a difference for my patients. I guess change management is my forte, although it has taken me many years to realise it. I am very passionate about nursing and I think sometimes I must look manic I get so excited describing plans to improve care. The passion never leaves. But I must - out to collect a daughter ... like a manager, a mother's work is never done! sisterkate.

Hi David I have been on lots of interview panels and for a manager I would be looking for someone who is assertive, confident of their abilities, has good organisational skills and is a good communicator. They should be dynamic and energetic in their thinking but present a calm exterior. I would be asking, amongst other things: 1. Can you describe a time where you had to manage a conflict between staff? What did you do and what effect did it have? (good chance to show your reflective skills, varied communication strategies and knowledge of company policies re grievance procedures etc.) 2. What do you understand by 'change management'? Describe a time when you had to introduce change, what process you used and what difficulties you encountered. If you had to do it again, would you do anything differently? (reflective practice again!) 3. Why is 'quality improvement' important for a nurse? Describe an QI initiative that you have been involved in.(good opportunity to talk yourself up if you have been busy with improving practice.) 4. What skills do you think a manager should have and do you think that you have them. (Great opportunity to really spruik about yourself!) A good manager makes or breaks a ward.Good luck! regards Sisterkate.

The pay rates are pretty much the same between public and private. Acuity of patients depends on the hospital. Joondalup for instance is a private hospital , nice environment, but as it take the public patients from a large area, the acuity is high. It has a large and very busy ED

Hi I've worked as a senior nurse in Private and Public hospitals. Both have their good points and all sponsor overseas nurses. Joondalup Health Campus in the northern Perth suburbs is a private hospital that has both public and private patients so you get the best of both worlds, and it is small enough ( I think about 350 beds currently) to have a lovely friendly feel where everyone knows everyone else. Hollywood is pretty good too, and belongs to the same company as Joondalup. it really depends where you live and how much driving you want to do. The public hospitals offer more in the way of tax breaks through salary sacrificing and help with relocation expenses from overseas or interstate. There are lots of jobs in all specialities, particularly mental health.