Ask me a question

June 27, 2009 · 23 Comments
in General Nursing Stuff

Ok, so….

If you have a burning question you’d like to ask, go ahead and throw it into the comment box below.

Alternatively, if you’re a bit shy or the question is of a personal nature, contact me!

Update: Visit our new Nursing Stories pages

23 Responses to “Ask me a question”

Comments

  1. Ross says:
    July 17, 2009 at 5:24 pm

    Thanks to Jeff from TravelNursingBlogs who asks “Is there a nursing shortage in Australia? What is the industry like there? Has the global recession hit it?”

    Thanks for the questions, Jeff – you can read my reply titled
    Nursing shortages in Australia.

  2. Ross says:
    July 18, 2009 at 11:41 am

    Eunice asks:
    “With your nursing career now, do you still have time to pursue your hobbies? (be it in IT/music..) or does this job suppress ur creative side?”
     
    Thanks Eunice, you can read my reply over at starting in nursing.

  3. Elizabeth says:
    July 20, 2009 at 9:02 am

    Hello Ross,
    Thank you for the opportunity to ask you a question!

    I’m a journalist considering a second career in nursing. I read online that there are accelerated programmes in nursing for people like me. Are there such things in Australia? I was hoping to study in Australia.

    Do you know anyone who has made a career shift to nursing?

  4. Ross says:
    July 20, 2009 at 11:06 pm

    @Elizabeth, who asks:
    “I’m a journalist considering a second career in nursing. I read online that there are accelerated programmes in nursing for people like me. Are there such things in Australia? I was hoping to study in Australia.”
     
    Most Bachelor of Nursing programs in Australia are 3 years long, however some universities like USQ and UQ offer Accelerated Progression (6 Semester Consecutive Progression, so you study over the semester breaks & complete the full course in either 2 or 2 1/2 years).
     
    I’ve heard that the University of Sydney offers a program tailored for graduates of other degrees, but I’m not sure how long the course would take you to become registered.
     
    Regarding undertaking accelerated programs overseas then applying for registration in Australia – at the moment you apply to the state you’re interested in and they assess each application to determine whether or not you’re eligible (eg. QNC info for overseas applicants) I guess you have to be careful to make sure that any course you do overseas will allow you to become Registered in Australia – I would suggest that any one year course for instance would probably not cut it, as no one year Registered Nurse program is offered in Australia.
     
    NB – Australia is moving towards national accreditation, so in the future I guess you will apply for registration through a national body rather than individual states.
     
    “Do you know anyone who has made a career shift to nursing?”
     
    Absolutely, heaps of people make complete career changes. I know of people from many different backgrounds and professions who have switched to nursing – most experiences work out fine because people generally realise whether or not they’re cut out for nursing while they’re studying/training etc. Maybe you should check out my post titled should I be a nurse? for more info.
     
    Good luck!

  5. Elizabeth says:
    July 22, 2009 at 6:32 pm

    Thank you Ross, That was so useful :)

    I hope that by the time I am in Australia, studying that degree, there will be national accredition. It’s encouraging to know that many have made the career shift … but it’s so daunting to make that change after 10 years as a journalist!

  6. Steven says:
    July 26, 2009 at 6:22 pm

    Hey Elizabeth and Ross

    I am currently enrolled in Curtin University in WA and doing a graduate pathway course for nursing. This course takes 2 years and requires a previous degree.
    I think this course is available for oversea students if you are not a local.

  7. Ross says:
    July 29, 2009 at 3:01 pm

    @Steven – thanks for the info!

  8. Dyan Salanguit says:
    July 30, 2009 at 7:52 pm

    Hi I’m a Renal nurse in the Philippines hoping to work overseas specially in Australia. What are the requirements to be a nurse in Australia if you are from the Philippines? Would you consider my experience as a Renal nurse in a Dialysis Center or does Australia strictly require Hospital experience from Filipino Nurses?

  9. Ross says:
    August 2, 2009 at 3:05 pm

    @Dyan Salanguit – Hi there. To find out about requirements for overseas nurses in Australia please check out this page, and also shoot an email off to the international immigrants email address at the bottom of this page, they’ll give you heaps of info. Good luck!

  10. cleeford says:
    August 5, 2009 at 12:01 pm

    hello, im a registered nurse in the philippines. i would like to know if you have any idea of hospitals there that in need of nurses. thank you. and by the way. what did you ate for breakfast? and have you eaten some filipino foods?

  11. Ross says:
    August 5, 2009 at 3:06 pm

    @Cleeford – Hi, thanks for visiting. Heaps of hospitals have jobs and need nurses, I suggest you check out the job search page. For breakfast I had bacon & eggs on the bbq at the beach, and pancakes with fresh coffee…. one of the best breakfasts I’ve had! No I don’t think I’ve eaten filipino foods….

  12. Ross says:
    August 6, 2009 at 7:59 pm

    Kay has a question in response to my comment yesterday which was: “A full time RN (level 1) in Australia can currently make $80,000+ AUD, so the course is paid off quite quickly.”

    Kay Asks:

    “I don’t know of any nurses who are earning $80,000+ a year in Melbourne. Most nurses I know are earning about $25 per hour. Where are these jobs that pay you about $40+ an hour?
    I found this web page about wages in Australia and they aren’t earning $40+ per hour, that’s for sure.” (wages for registered nurses)

    Answer:
    Fay raises a good point, I should have clarified my comments a bit better. First of all, the visa-wages page you link to is a little outdated, in fact – visas australia is not a good place to go to get up to date wage info for nurses. See here for more info.

    Basically to answer your question, the secret lies in penalty rates. For any nurses working day shifts monday to friday you can expect to get paid exactly what is stated on the wage pages. For most nurses however (shift workers), there are penalty rates for afternoons, nights, saturdays and sundays. This equates to a considerable difference in your pay every fortnight to that which is advertised.

    For a full time level 1 nurse (ie, not a nurse practitioner etc) who has worked for 7 yrs or more, this means you can earn $80,000 + quite easily. Queensland also allows you to salary sacrifice a portion of your pay to go towards your mortgage or rent each fortnight, and this is paid without taxes applied.

    If you are a new or re-entry nurse, you will not make quite this much. However, if you are a shift worker, you can expect to make significantly more than the advertised fortnightly wage due to penalty rates.

    Hope this answers your question, for current wages in Qld see this post.

  13. Theresa says:
    August 13, 2009 at 4:34 am

    Hi Ross,
    I am a fourth year nursing student from Assumption International University,Thailand.I would like to ask about internship in QLD.I have to take internship course for 275 hours before i graduate on March 2010.I am very interested in taking internship course in QLD. Is there any public hospital which can provide for internship in QLD, around Nundah. If so, is it possible to get any contact person from that hospital?

  14. Ross says:
    August 13, 2009 at 11:43 am

    @Theresa – Hi, thanks for visiting. I believe there has to be agreements in place between the hospital in Queensland where the student will be doing a clinical placement, and the respective University.
     
    Queensland health is no longer accepting student placement deeds with international education providers, however you can apply for clinical placement by applying through a recognised Qld University.
     
    The purpose of the agreements (Student Placement Deeds) is to cover things like indemnity, intellectual property, privacy and consent.
     
    For more info including contact details see the student clinical placements (international) page from Qld Health. Good luck!

  15. Theresa says:
    August 13, 2009 at 7:22 pm

    Hi Ross,
    Thank you so much for your useful information. I still would like to know something. If i take my internship course there, in QLD, will it be advantageous when I apply nursing job there in Australia in future?

  16. Caroline deng says:
    August 29, 2009 at 10:45 pm

    Hi,i’m a nursing student in china and now interning in the hospital.Maybe after i get my diploma and certificate nurse,i’l consider to go to study one year course in university,i think the most difficult thing is the english part,are u people in local speak with oz’accent? Thanks in pre for u info

  17. Ross says:
    September 3, 2009 at 1:50 pm

    @Theresa – this is a difficult question! My gut instinct is that yes, it will probably work out more favourably for you to secure a job in the short term, simply because you will have working knowledge of the ins & outs of Australian nursing, and can also show a prospective employer that you’ve spent part of your training here. That’s not to say you won’t get a job regardless of where you do your internship….

  18. Ross says:
    September 3, 2009 at 1:54 pm

    @Caroline deng – Hi there, thanks for visiting. Look, Australians certainly are a bit slangy with our accents, like anywhere we also have some peculiarities with our culture (we tend to use sarcasm a lot, for instance.) Like anywhere, adapting to a particular culture gets easier with time.

    I see you speak english fairly well already, if can do it at a level where you are a safe practitioner then you’ll do fine in Australia.

  19. Jonetani says:
    September 7, 2009 at 8:58 pm

    Hi Ross,

    I am an overseas RN and have been living in Australia for almost 2 years now.At the moment I am trying to register with QNC but it looks like its going to be a long way for now.There is this Challenge Test that I will be sitting on Wednesday(09/09/09)and I am wondering if you know of any overseas nurse/s who have taken this test in the past.

  20. Ross says:
    September 7, 2009 at 10:37 pm

    Hi Jonetani… heaps of info here about it from people who have done it Competency Assessment QLD

  21. Jonetani says:
    September 9, 2009 at 1:13 pm

    Ross thanks for the info about Qld CAS…just sat for the test today….confident of getting through.
    This site is very helpful.

    Cheers

  22. Ross says:
    September 10, 2009 at 1:22 am

    Hey, no worries Jonetani – happy to help out! Good luck with your results…

  23. Seren says:
    September 13, 2009 at 6:41 am

    I am an American RN with about 10 years MedSurg experience. I often hear of nurses here that would like to consider long term travel Nursing to Australia. But after reading many of the Blogs heres what it sounds like -
    1- “People” say that Australia ‘really needs RN’s badly” however it sure sounds like the Unions and the Govts in each province do EVERTHING possible to keep all overseas Nurses OUT. The Unions want RNs to stay OUT. The Govt (supported in reelections by massive Unions contributions) have so many steps for competent American RNs to travel there it would make most nurses head spin :(
    Ill continue doing research but may just go to Canada instead, at least the Canadians dont have double speak – we want you, now just TRY to get in!
    wow :(

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