South West hospitals to welcome graduate nurses and midwives

Record numbers of newly qualified nurses and midwives will soon make their way to South West hospitals to help boost staffing numbers across the region. Forty-eight nursing and midwifery graduates will kickstart their careers with the WA Country Health Service through fixed and rotational clinical placements in hospitals throughout the South West, with 14 of these taking part in a new 12-month placement. The Transition to Rural AdVEnture and Lifestyle Program (TRAVEL) offers new graduates three regional placements during the one-year program, supported through accommodation subsidies and relocation allowances. Acting executive director of nursing and midwifery at WACHS, Yvonne Bagwell, said the health service’s program offered the graduates a level of early-stage professional development they could only get in rural and regional WA. “Our newly qualified nurses and midwives work across hospital, community and aged care settings, with unparalleled opportunities for knowledge sharing and professional development,” Ms Bagwell said. “Working in a rural location exposes graduates to so many different fields and specialties. They will each have the chance to hone their skills under the watchful eye of some of the State’s best educators and specialists. “Rural practice also gives newly qualified nurses and midwives the opportunity to become active members of the communities in which they live and work.” WACHS chief executive officer Jeff Moffet said graduate placement programs like this helped the regions attract and retain essential qualified clinicians. “We hope this program will drive our newly qualified nurses and midwives to consider a long-term career in the bush,” he said. “This next generation of nurses and midwives will play a fundamental role in supporting our existing healthcare teams and I thank them for choosing to support South West communities.”