News
20 Sep 2024

Message from the President | September

It's been nearly a month since our inaugural Cancer Nurses Day, and what an important milestone it was. We reflected on the success of the initiative and the widespread recognition across the country at our recent Board meeting and took a moment to look at the engagement metrics nationally. Click here to see how we performed. Imagine how big this can get as we continue to grow and evolve! 

Following the Board meeting, I also wanted to share these other important updates with you:

► National Nursing Workforce Strategy

The Department of Health and Aged Care is developing Australia’s first National Nursing Workforce Strategy. This will establish priorities for enhancing the nursing workforce, with the framework aiming to shape the future of workforce planning, investment and reform. 

The draft strategy is now available and there is an open consultation for feedback. This is an opportunity for you to have your say and help shape a strategy that will impact the whole nursing profession now and into the future. Click here to find out more.

CNSA provided feedback to the first consultation and will be developing a submission on the draft strategy. If you would like to contribute, please contact [email protected].  

► Australia Cancer Nursing and Navigation Program (ACNNP)

We included a lot of information on the ACNNP rollout in last week's newsletter, and I encourage members to stay up to date with the Program as the three navigation, nursing and specialist support streams develop.

To find out the latest information, we recommend you register for our ACNNP Update webinar on 19 November here.

► New projects on the horizon

As an organisation, we are constantly scanning the horizon to ensure we're meeting, and exceeding, the needs of our membership. With this in mind, we are:

  • Developing a new CNSA website with improved usability and information-sharing capacity (coming soon!).
  • Developing a new Early Career membership category supported by a webinar series of cancer nursing essentials.
  • Progressing with phase 2 of an update to the Cancer Nursing Capability Framework for cancer nurses in Australia - outlining clinical capabilities and education requirements to guide cancer nursing career pathways.
  • Exploring new partnership opportunities with industry to provide meaningful and tangible engagement aligned with our goals and strategic priorities.
  • Commencing work on the 2025 Cancer Nursing Workforce survey, to understand shifts and changes to trends in the workforce over the past three years.

We continue to support the membership and look forward to engaging more broadly during this exciting period with the intersection of the Australian Cancer Plan, the Australian Cancer Nursing and Navigation Program, and the National Nursing Workforce Strategy, to ensure the alignment of our priorities and strategic goals to build capacity in the workforce and ultimately, improve outcomes for people affected by cancer. 

Kind regards,

Anne Mellon
CNSA President

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