I got this from the Australian version of Yahoo news. It looks like nursing is going from strength to strength. :)
Labor planning for 9,250 more nurses
Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd has announced an $81 million plan to put an extra 9,250 nurses into Australia's hospitals.
After touring the Mater Hospital in Brisbane, Mr Rudd announced the initiative which would aim to attract trained nurses back into the profession and provide for an extra 1,500 graduate nurses.
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"This is a significant first step in Labor's long term plan to meet the large nursing shortfall that currently exists under the Howard government," he said.
"Australia's public and private hospitals desperately need more nurses."
The Labor initiative is over five years.
Federal health minister Tony Abbott dismissed the plan.
Mr Abbott said wooing trained nurses back into hospitals with a financial bonus could cause resentment amongst nurses currently working in the health system.
"Giving nurses who aren't currently in the system some sort of one-off bonus to come back in, apart from anything else, that could well breed resentment for those nurses who have always stayed at their post," he said.
Mr Abbott, who is campaigning in two marginal West Australian electorates, says he is not surprised by an opinion poll showing a coalition recovery on economic management.
"I've always thought that the polls over the last few months have very significantly overstated Kevin Rudd strengths, indicating a very bad result for the government.
"On the street there's never been anything like the kind of obvious resentment that would justify the sort of polls we've been seeing."
Mr Abbott said the government was very much still the underdog.
"The real workers' party these days is the Liberal party," Mr Abbott said.
"I think any claims Labor may historically have to represent the workers of Australia are very old fashioned these days."
Prime Minister John Howard says it's interesting Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd chose to make a health funding announcement at a hospital run by a community board.
Mr Rudd made his announcement at the Mater Hospital in Brisbane.
Mr Howard pointed out Mater was run by a local community board. The federal government wants to see more hospitals run by community boards, a plan Labor is opposed to.
"That is interesting, very very interesting indeed," Mr Howard told reporters.
"I thought boards were bad.
"But it's a wonderful hospital, and anything that involves training more nurses I support," he said on the funding announcement.
Nurses say Labor's plan to bring 9,250 extra nurses into Australia's hospital system is a step in the right direction.
"The plan ... is a move in the right direction," said Royal College of Nursing Australia executive director Rosemary Bryant.
"This plan recognises the vital role that registered nurses play in the health system and makes a valuable investment into the education of nurses.
"The provision of appropriately qualified nurses will improve health service delivery and thus better outcomes for consumers of these services."
But the college, a professional body for nurses, said Labor must also look beyond hospitals to address nursing shortages in other health and aged care sectors.
Good luck all you nurses out there (well, every one really)
The Tuckers
