From the Chief Executive Officer

The nursing role is essential for promoting better health outcomes for a variety of at-risk groups.

Last month I promised to report back on the Community and Primary Health Care Nursing Conference and it is my pleasure now to do just that! Firstly, I think that from all the conversations with delegates I had during and since the conference, it is fair to say that the conference exceeded all expectations – including mine!

It was just brilliant; I think every single delegate was challenged by at least one of the presentations, and together, the presentations really highlighted the diversity of the nursing role in the community and primary health care sector. They especially demonstrated that the nursing role is essential for promoting better health outcomes for a variety of at-risk groups in our country that would otherwise struggle to access the health care services they need due to financial, linguistic, educational or social limitations.

The fact that conventional medical services often remain out of reach to these groups in our community drew attention to the flaws in our health care system, and the desperate need for further reform to the system. On the flip side, we were reminded that nurses are rising to the challenge and targeting these groups with a range of effective health services, education and health promotion activities.

Nurses are helping to ensure that health services are not only available to the people who can afford them, or those allowed access to the Medicare system or who have a good grasp of the English language and knowledge of how the complex Australian health system works. Nurses are leading the way in ensuring that a person’s economic, social and cultural circumstances do not determine a person’s health and wellbeing status.

At RCNA we will continue to push, promote and profile the role of nurses in the community and primary health care sector, because we believe it is essential that our communities, our government and the wider health sector understands the growing role of nurses and supports their role in the health system. We will continue to do this through our policy work, our media and communication activities and events.

I’m already looking forward to next year’s Community and Primary Health Care Nursing Conference, which will take place from 19 – 21 October 2011, but until then, I look forward to informing you of further advances in the community and primary health care sector.

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