Grad nurses struggle to find work

The Australian Nursing Federation Tasmania branch expressed concern last week over the lack of nursing roles offered to graduate nurses in the state.

The federation is reportedly alarmed that some Tasmanian nurses are forced to move interstate for employment. Offers for most graduate positions were posted last week.

More than 300 nurses will graduate from the University of Tasmania (UTAS) in the coming months, yet the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is reportedly only offering about 100 graduate positions – most of which are part time.

Before the budget cuts, 179 full time equivalent DHHS graduate positions were reportedly offered.

“The budget cuts have slashed the number of graduate nurses being offered employment by more than half,” Neroli Ellis, branch secretary, claimed.

“This short term strategy will have dire impacts on the future ability of our healthcare system to cope with growing demands and an ageing nursing workforce who are entering a retirement phase over the next four years,” she added.

Whitney Bowerman is a graduate who missed out on a graduate position this year, despite achieving high academic success.

“Many of us entered nursing due to the promise of employment and the opportunity to gain work in any area of nursing that we wished, instead we have found the exact opposite,” Ms Bowerman said in a released statement.

“I’ve worked as an enrolled nurse for three years now and worked so hard to achieve high grades throughout university. Sadly, despite all of this, the Tasmanian government has chosen to let nursing students, the nursing workforce and the people of Tasmania down by failing to see the value of the continuing health workforce.”

Many nurses apply to undertake their graduate year interstate as they know there will be very few opportunities here in Tasmania, according to the Australian Nursing Federation.

“We are losing a whole generation of nurses which will lead to a hard recovery, as enticing nurses and their families back to Tasmania in the current climate is very difficult,” Ms Ellis said.

“We are seeing an incredible drain of nurses leaving the state since the budget cuts, with around 30 transferring interstate every month as they are frustrated with the shortages and the impacts on patient care.”