April 2024

News

Chair’s message
Call for applications
- Interested in joining the ACT Board of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia?
NMBA news
- National Midwifery Workforce Symposium
- Webinar: Partnering in culturally safe and collaborative clinical practice
Updates from NMBA meetings
- Meeting in Hobart
- Approved programs of study
Registration
- Renewal is now open
- Resources for renewal
Students and graduates
- Student survey to plan for the future nursing and midwifery workforce
Spotlight
Nursing and midwifery regulation at work: notification case studies
Keep in touch with the NMBA

Chair’s message

Registration renewals for nurses and midwives are now open. I encourage you all to renew now to avoid any delays or late fees.

Please remember that the name you use to register will appear on the national register. Ensure the details you give us are accurate, current and unique to you and consider adding Ahpra to your Safe Senders list so you don’t miss important information about your registration and renewal.

I’d like to welcome Alison Verhoeven to the NMBA Board. You can learn more about the expertise and experience Alison brings to the team in our next issue.

Finally, International Day of the Midwife (5 May) and International Nurses Day (12 May) are fast approaching. I would like to extend an early thank you for all of the incredible work you do to support our communities.

Best wishes,

Adjunct Professor Veronica Casey

Chair, Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia

Call for applications

Interested in joining the ACT Board of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia?

We are seeking applications from registered nurses, midwives and community members from the Australian Capital Territory.

Applications open: Saturday 6 April 2024
Applications close: Sunday 19 May 2024

To apply or find out more about either role please visit Ahpra’s current opportunities page.

NMBA news

National Midwifery Workforce Symposium

On 14 March, we hosted the National Midwifery Futures Symposium with our project partners from Burnet Institute. This event brought together leaders, policy makers, regulators, clinicians and consumers from across Australia as part of the Australian Midwifery Workforce Project.

Attendees were provided with a snapshot of the project's preliminary findings and participated in a series of workshops focused on educational pathways, workforce solutions and recruitment, retention and attrition of midwives. The insights gained from over 100 passionate attendees will help inform recommendations for a sustainable future of midwifery in Australia.

A final report outlining the current state of Australia’s midwifery workforce and identifying opportunities to strengthen and grow the profession will be published later this year.

Webinar: Partnering in culturally safe and collaborative clinical practice

With the release of the Guidance for nurses and midwives working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioners, the NMBA and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practice Board of Australia co-hosted a webinar on 5 March to explain how the document was developed and to raise awareness of nurses and midwives’ role and expectations when collaborating with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practitioners.

For those that could not attend on the day, a recording of the webinar is now available on the NMBA website.

Updates from NMBA meetings

Meeting in Hobart

In March, we met with the Tasmanian Board members, the Tasmanian Chief Nurse and Midwife and other nursing and midwifery executives at Ahpra’s Hobart office.

Approved programs of study

Each month the NMBA makes decisions on approved programs of study leading to registration and endorsement. To see the up-to-date, searchable list of approved programs, please visit the Approved programs of study section on our website.

Registration

Renewal is now open

You should have received an email from Ahpra providing access to your online renewal.

Remember to renew your registration by 31 May to avoid any delays or late fees.

Registration is an important part of maintaining the public’s trust and confidence in your profession and enables you to practise.

Registration fees for 2024

The fee for general registration has been set at $185 and will apply to the majority of nurses and midwives. Registration fees fund the work of Ahpra and the NMBA to keep the public safe. We work to keep fees as low as possible while continuing to meet regulator obligations and the expectations of the public and practitioners.

If you hold both nursing and midwifery registration you only need to pay one registration renewal fee. The renewal fee for nurses and midwives whose principal place of practice is New South Wales, is also $185. You can find the full schedule of fees on the NMBA website

What is a health impairment?

When renewing your registration, you need to tell us if you have a health impairment and what you are doing to manage it.

Needing glasses isn’t a health impairment. Wearing orthotics or having a hearing aid isn’t a health impairment. Having a latex allergy isn’t a health impairment.

A health impairment is a physical or mental condition that either does, or could, affect your ability to practise safely. Having a health impairment doesn’t mean you can’t practise your profession; you just need to have the right supports in place to do so safely.

How do we know if you are safe to practise?

When renewing, all nurses and midwives must declare that they meet the NMBA’s registration standards including professional indemnity insurance, recency of practice, continuing professional development and criminal history. You will also be required to declare any impairments that may affect your practice.

Note: If you have an endorsement you will need to meet the registration standards for that as well.

We developed these standards as a baseline requirement that all nurses and midwives must meet to be able to practise safely. We also review these standards and guidelines at least every five years to ensure they remain fit for purpose.

Why do I need to renew?

Renewing your registration each year lets the people in your care know that you’re safe and competent to practise.

Each year, every registered practitioner is required to renew their registration. This includes nurses, midwives, medical practitioners, paramedics, occupational therapists and more.

Why do I have to pay a fee?

The NMBA relies on registration fees to regulate both the nursing and midwifery professions and meet our regulatory responsibilities under the National Law.

Nursing and midwifery regulation in Australia is primarily funded by fees from nurses and midwives. There is no cross-subsidisation in the National Scheme, meaning fees from nurses and midwives only fund nursing and midwifery regulation costs.

The NMBA works in partnership with Ahpra to keep the public safe.

Resources for renewal

Your health matters

Nurse & Midwife Support is a free and independent, 24/7 service run by nurses and midwives providing access to confidential advice and referral.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Engagement and Support team

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nurses and midwives can reach out to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Engagement and Support team for support through the renewal process.

Students and graduates

Student survey to plan for the future nursing and midwifery workforce

Are you a current nursing or midwifery student wanting to help shape the workforce now and into the future?

The NMBA would like to know more about your current studies, clinical placement experiences and future work plans to inform the format of the new student register and ensure we engage with you in the right way.

The final report will detail the type of information students need to know about the NMBA, their preferred contact format and examine the demographics of current student nurses and midwives.

Participation in the survey is voluntary and data will only be used for the purposes described above.

Take the survey here.

Spotlight

Melbourne hosts the OSCEs

In February, 445 internationally qualified nurses and midwives (IQNMs) sat their Objective Structured Clinical Examinations at the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) new purpose-built specialist examination centre in Melbourne. The new site is expected to enable twice the number of IQNMs to sit their exams in 2024.

The partnership with RANZCOG is a significant milestone in the NMBA’s commitment to safely expand the national workforce, helping to increase our assessment capabilities and accelerate the recognition of health practitioners’ skills and qualifications.

Ahpra partnership with Weenthunga Health Network guiding critical reform work to eliminate racism in healthcare

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples have the right to access and work in healthcare that is culturally safe and free from racism. The health practitioner regulator’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Strategy Unit is supporting the Cultural Safety Accreditation and Continuing Professional Development Working Group and Weenthunga Health Network, an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consultancy, to co-design and develop nationally consistent standards, codes and guidelines on cultural safety for registered practitioners.

The Cultural Safety Accreditation and Continuing Professional Development Framework and Strategy is a multi-year project, grounded by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of being, knowing and doing. By embedding cultural safety in accreditation and continuing professional development requirements for all 16 regulated health professions in the National Scheme, we will ensure consistency and accountability to protect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients and health workers.

Cultural safety is patient safety. Racist and culturally unsafe practice and behaviour towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples will not be tolerated, as seen in the landmark ruling of a doctor banned for discriminatory and offensive behaviour.

Myths and misconceptions about notifications – getting the help you need

Too often, practitioners struggle in silence when they are dealing with a health, mental health or drug and alcohol issue – or even just the day-to-day challenges of being a health practitioner.

The best thing you can do – for yourself, for your family, and for your patients – is to seek help early and to actively engage in recommended treatments. This might be from your own GP, another health practitioner or from one of the many independent practitioner support services available.

There is a common misconception that if you seek help, your treating practitioner will automatically be required to report it to Ahpra and your registration may be affected.

The threshold for when treating practitioners need to make a mandatory notification about health is very high and only necessary when the public is at substantial risk of harm. The need for a mandatory notification to be made is not often met.

If you are managing your health and getting the help you need, you can usually continue to practise. The Board wants you to be healthy and safe to practise, and encourages you to seek help early when you need support.

Nursing and midwifery regulation at work: notification case studies

The NMBA publishes summaries of tribunal decisions about nurses and midwives as professional learning case studies. All information in these summaries has been made publicly available by the relevant tribunal before the NMBA publishes its summary.

Privately practising midwife banned for 10 years

A midwife providing private midwifery and home birthing services has been reprimanded and disqualified by a tribunal from applying for registration for 10 years after she practised outside established standards and inconsistently with evidence informed care.

Tribunal disqualifies nurse for five years for repeated sexual harassment

A tribunal has disqualified a registered nurse from re-applying for registration for five years after he continually sexually harassed a work colleague for seven months.

Nurse disqualified for two years after misappropriating medication from MedStations

A tribunal has disqualified a registered nurse from applying for registration for two years after she misappropriated various medications, including Schedule 3 and 4 substances from her workplace.

Visit the NMBA website for registration standards, codes, guidelines and FAQs.
Lodge an online enquiry form.
For registration enquiries, call 1300 419 495 (from within Australia) or +61 3 9285 3010 (for overseas callers).
Address mail correspondence to: Adjunct Professor Veronica Casey AM, Chair, Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, GPO Box 9958, Melbourne, VIC 3001.