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Our nurses

We have a highly qualified nursing workforce of over 3000 nurses who work in numerous roles and are committed to providing positive patient experiences that lead to improved health outcomes. Nurses assess, plan, implement and evaluate care for patients that is evidenced based and meets individual needs of patients and their loved ones.

Our registered nurses meet the requirements of registration through the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), with a significant number engaged in further learning and post graduate qualifications.  Our enrolled nurses and assistants in nursing support the delivery provision of nursing care.

Nurses continually learn and develop with a commitment to life-long learning, and many participate or lead quality improvement and research, contributing to new nursing knowledge and academic publications.

Our Professional Practice Model

Our PPM is the result of extensive consultation and collaboration with nursing staff at Princess Alexandra Hospital.

It outlines who we are, what we represent and the service we aim to provide. In our PPM  the ‘person’ requiring nursing care, along with their personal needs, values and expectations of health care is at the centre of all we do as a nursing service.

Magnet designation

“The Magnet Recognition Program® is an international accreditation that recognises nursing excellence in health care organisations…based on research that creating positive work environments for nurses leads to improved outcomes for staff and patient (1) .” 

Princess Alexandra Hospital was designated as a Magnet organisation in 2004, with redesignation achieved in 2009, 2014 and 2019. 

1) Jones K (2017) The benefits of Magnet status for nurses, patients and organisations. Nursing Times [online]; 113: 11, 28-31.

Read more about our Magnet journey

Education

At PAH, we strive for nurses to work at their optimum capacity and to continually advance their professional development and lifelong learning. To support this, both strategic and operational professional development services and programs are provided for all levels of nursing.

The Nursing Practice Development Unit (NPDU) Education team seeks to assist nurses by offering many and varied education programs and activities, which include:

  • Offering a continually improving learning experience for well over 2,000 nursing students from a variety of education facilities.
  • Coordinating clinical experiences for various other groups, such as nurses returning to the profession.
  • Assessing and meeting the learning needs of ENs and AINs through workshops, inservice and support/networking meetings.
  • Co-ordinating and delivering a monthly nursing orientation program for nurses new to the organisation.
  • Working closely with clinical units to recruit and support graduate nurses as they adjust to their role.
  • Working on a consultancy basis with various units to facilitate planning days, plan change, addressing any scope of practice issues or changes, and address specific unit needs.
  • Offering several development programs, in areas such as leadership and how to support the learning of others.

Princess Alexandra Hospital also employs nurse educators and clinical facilitators at the unit level. These nurses have specialised knowledge in particular areas of nursing, as well as in education. They support teaching and learning in the clinical environment to ensure our nurses are enabled to deliver excellent patient care.

Research and publications

The Nursing Practice Development Unit (NPDU) research team assists nurse clinicians of PAH to undertake research, evaluation, quality improvement and clinical audit projects. The team is passionate about research and improvement: Developing a culture of enquiry to improve patient outcomes through translation of research and improvement activities. New knowledge gained in research outcomes is used to change and improve clinical practice and improve patient outcomes.

Find out more about the research undertaken and the resulting publications:

Reward and recognition

Each year, we recognise nurses across several categories at our International Nurses Day reward and recognition ceremony.

International Nurses Day

The International Council of Nurses leads the celebrations on International Nurses Day, which is traditionally held on 12 May, the Anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birth. The Princess Alexandra Hospital holds multiple activities over the week that International Nurses Day falls, including keynote speakers, reward and recognition awards, showcases of research and quality improvement as well as fun activities and competitions.

Nurse Practitioners

Nurse Practitioners are advanced practice nurses that work in a variety of specialties and provide comprehensive care to patients. They provide primary and preventative care, diagnose, treat certain conditions, and prescribe certain medications. Nurse Practitioners at the Princess Alexandra Hospital work in areas such as:

  • Peritoneal Dialysis
  • Haemodialysis
  • Hypertension
  • Trauma Service
  • Chronic Disease
  • Palliative Care
  • Diabetes and Endocrine
  • Heart Recovery Service
  • Melanoma.

Nurse Navigators

Nurse Navigators are a team of senior advanced practice registered nurses who provide a vital service for patients who have complex health conditions and require a high degree of comprehensive, clinical care. They play a key role in supporting and coordinating a patient’s entire health care journey, rather than focusing on just a specific disease or condition.

To find out more about Nurse Navigators, visit the Office of the Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer.

Careers in nursing

Princess Alexandra Hospital is a truly great place to work – our nurses have consistently told us this. To find out more about working at PAH, view our current vacancies.

Last updated 16 December 2021
Last reviewed 16 December 2021